Congresswoman Lee, Congressman Deutch Lead Letter Opposing the Nomination of Sarah Pitlyk
Washington, D.C. - Yesterday, Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) and Congressman Ted Deutch (D-Fla.) led a letter opposing the nomination of Sarah Pitlyk to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. The letter urged Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to oppose her nomination.
“Ms. Pitlyk’s extreme record demonstrates that she is not fit, fair-minded, or committed to upholding our core constitutional protections, including reproductive freedom,” the lawmakers wrote. “Ms. Pitlyk has made a career out of opposing reproductive health care and her views are far outside the mainstream.”
The lawmakers continued, saying Ms. Pitlyk “has defended blatantly unconstitutional abortion bans, used racial and xenophobic stereotypes to promote her anti-abortion agenda, supported the Trump Administration’s dangerous Title X gag rule (which has seriously undermined the Title X Family Planning Program), and defended extreme anti-choice activists.”
The American Bar Association Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary unanimously determined that Ms. Pitlyk is “Not Qualified” for the position of federal district judge, stating that: “Ms. Pitlyk’s experience to date has a very substantial gap, namely the absence of any trial or even real litigation experience. Ms. Pitlyk has never tried a case as lead or co-counsel, whether civil or criminal. She has never examined a witness. Though Ms. Pitlyk has argued one case in a court of appeals, she has not taken a deposition. She has not argued any motion in a state or federal trial court. She has never picked a jury. She has never participated in any stage of a criminal matter.”
Lee and Deutch were joined by Reps. Norma Torres (D-Calif.), Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), Julia Brownley (D-Calif.), and Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.).
Full text of the letter can be found here.
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