Ads Attack Presidential Candidate Edwards on Brown Nomination
by Paul Nowak
LifeNews.com Staff Writer
November 8, 2003
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — Supporters of California Supreme Court judge Janice Rogers Brown launched a television ad campaign attacking pro-abortion presidential candidate Sen. John Edwards (D-NC) for his criticism of the newest of President Bush’s pro-life judicial nominees.
The ad aired Wednesday though Friday in South Carolina, where Edwards’ campaign has been focused on the state’s early primary. It tells of Justice Janice Rogers Brown’s rise from the daughter of a sharecropper to become the only black member of the California Supreme Court.
President Bush has nominated the pro-life jurist to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, and the Senate Judiciary Committee has approved the nomination.
Sen. Edwards is expected to join his fellow Democrats in attempting to block the nomination, as they have already filibustered four of Bush’s appeals court nominees
"She has a record of repeatedly putting her own views above the law — views that are hostile to fundamental civil and constitutional rights and to affirmative action in particular," Edwards said in a release.
“Shame on you, Sen. Edwards," the ad says.
"Our ads are meant to call attention to the fact here is a good woman who we think is really inspiring…who has risen to a prominent position and is now being nominated for the second most important court in the entire country by President Bush,” said Sean Rushton, executive director of the Committee for Justice, the group running the ads.
"John Edwards is joining in with what we regard as the liberal extremist groups in Washington to attack her," Rushton added.
Those pro-abortion groups, including the NAACP, have also voiced criticism of Brown. However, the Rev. Al Sharpton, in contrast, has urged Senate Democrats not to filibuster her nomination.
"I don’t agree with her politics. I don’t agree with some of her background," said Sharpton, another Democratic presidential hopeful. "But she should get an up-or-down vote."
Brown has also garnered the support of the California voters. In 1998, 76% of voters decided to keep Brown on the bench in their state, the highest percentage of supporting votes in that election.
The other pro-life Appeals Court nominees that have been filibustered by Senate Democrats are: Alabama Attorney General William Pryor, Texas judge Priscilla Owen, Mississippi judge Charles Pickering and Hispanic lawyer Miguel Estrada.
Estrada dropped his nomination after several votes to break the filibuster saying Senate Democrats were destroying the judicial confirmation process.
