Columbia Standard

During a recent executive business meeting, Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, along with other Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, voted against three of President Trump's nominees for the Department of Justice. The nominees in question were John Sauer for Solicitor General, Harmeet Dhillon for Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, and Aaron Reitz for Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy.

Durbin expressed his concerns about these nominations, stating that they showed "unyielding loyalty to President Trump—and not the Constitution." He emphasized that all Committee Democrats opposed these candidates.

He criticized John Sauer for suggesting that court orders might not always need to be followed and arguing against prosecuting a former President for ordering an assassination. Durbin found these views troubling.

Harmeet Dhillon was also scrutinized by Durbin. He pointed out her dismissal of hypothetical scenarios where she might be asked to do something illegal or unconstitutional by the President. Durbin questioned her commitment to civil rights issues, including voting rights and LGBTQ+ rights.

Regarding Aaron Reitz, Durbin highlighted his reluctance to commit to following federal court orders and mentioned his attempt to delete approximately 4,000 social media posts containing controversial views on various topics. Durbin described Reitz as unfit for any role at the Department of Justice.

Durbin concluded by urging all Senators to carefully review the nominees' records with respect to the rule of law before casting their votes on the Senate floor.