In an expected and incredibly disappointing vote, the Senate today confirmed Southwick to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. From the Associated Press:

The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Judge Leslie Southwick to the federal appeals court serving Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas despite some Democrats’ complaints that decisions he supported were racially insensitive and inappropriate for a region still shadowed by civil rights struggles.

The 59-38 vote on confirmation was sealed after the nomination survived its main obstacle, a test tally moments earlier. Majority Democrats pressured by labor unions and other constituencies did not have the votes to filibuster, or block, Southwick’s confirmation.

The Congressional Black Caucus warned that there would be consequences for Democrats at the ballot box.

…

Urged by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the AFL-CIO and the Congressional Black Caucus, some Senate Democrats who opposed the nomination made their case nonetheless. They said they didn’t believe he is a bigot, but that the 5th Circuit could not afford a judge who has less than an “exemplary” record on civil rights.

“When it comes to the area of race and racism, we have to bend over backwards,” said Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“I certainly don’t think he’s a racist,” Schumer added. “His words have to be seen in context. Like it or not when he’s nominated to the Fifth Circuit he’s carrying 200 and some odd years…on his back. That is the issue here.”

At issue were two cases he was involved in as a state appeals court judge in Mississippi. One was a 1998 decision that upheld the reinstatement of a social worker who used a racial slur in reference to a co-worker. Three years later, Southwick joined a ruling against a bisexual mother in a custody case. He also joined what some activists said was an anti-gay concurring opinion.

Southwick’s supporters pointed out that those were among 7,000 opinions across the nominee’s career and that none of those facts addressed his qualifications. Conservative legal groups began pressuring Democrats from traditionally Republican states to at least give Southwick an up-or-down vote.

Still, his nomination languished until one Democrat, Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, joined with Judiciary Committee Republicans to move the question to the full Senate.

UPDATE: Senator Boxer, while opposed to the Southwick nomination, was not present for the cloture and confirmation votes on the floor of Senate.

At least one of California’s Senators is doing the right thing and voting against Southwick’s confirmation. Thank you, Senator Boxer!

The Fifth Circuit serves one of the most racially diverse regions in the country, and frequently hears critical civil rights cases. It is especially important, therefore, that a nominee to this court possess an unshakable commitment to equal justice and a willingness to protect the rights of groups such as minorities, workers, and consumers.

Unfortunately, President Bush has chosen a nominee who favors business interests over the interests of ordinary Americans and displays little regard for issues faced by minority communities. As a Mississippi state court judge, Mr. Southwick upheld a ruling that reinstated a state employee who used a racial slur, and in another case, found the sexual orientation of a mother to be a deciding factor in denying her custody of her child.

I am deeply disappointed that President Bush has once again attempted to fill the Fifth Circuit vacancy with a nominee holding views far to the right of most Americans.

Mr. Southwick’s nomination was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee on August 2, 2007 and will soon be considered by the entire Senate. Be assured that I will only support nominees who will safeguard the rights and freedoms of all Americans, and I do not support Mr. Southwick’s nomination.

The Hill is reporting that Sen. Feinstein “would vote for cloture and for the nomination on the floor.” Alliance for Justice also told us that Feinstein was on the floor speaking in favor of Southwick’s confirmation.

A vote to end debate on Southwick’s nomination to the Fifth Circuit is scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday, at 11 a.m EDT.  If that vote succeeds, the full Senate will vote on his confirmation.

Every vote is being mustered, even while we’re apparently losing votes from moderate and Red State Democrats who plan to vote for the judge. The Boston Globe reports that Senators McCain and Obama are cutting show campaign trips to be on the floor tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Demetrius Shelton of the National Bar Association informs us that the California Association of Black Lawyers and the Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles have both now gone on record opposing Southwick’s nomination. We thank them and welcome their opposition to the nominee.

Special thanks to Kimberlei Evans, president of the Charles Houston Bar Association, for securing CHBA’s opposition to Southwick. CHBA is an affiliate of the National Bar Association.

We also want to thank National Bar Association vice president Demetrius Shelton for working the emails and phones, getting NBA members and affiliates to call in opposition to Southwick:

The National Bar Association needs our help in encouraging Senator Feinstein to vote no on the nomination of Judge Leslie Southwick to the US Court of Appeal for the Fifth Circuit.  We have received word that the nomination may be voted on as soon as tomorrow.  Please contact Senator Feinstein’s office and let your voice be heard on this very important issue. In short, Judge Southwick’s record while serving as a Mississippi state appeals court judge is replete with evidence that he is hostile to African-Americans and disadvantaged people including a  decision upholding the reinstatement of a social worker who used a racial epithet (the “n-word”) to describe a colleague.   Please see e-mail below from our friends at the Equal Justice Society summarizing the issue more fully.

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 10-9 nearly along party lines Aug. 2 to approve the nomination. To our surprise, California Democrat Dianne Feinstein joined all nine committee Republicans in voting for the nomination.  We ask that upon receipt of this e-mail that you contact Senator Feinstein’s office and urge her to vote no tomorrow when this matter comes before the full Senate!

A Congressional Quarterly article today by Keith Perine indicates that moderate Democrats are trying to push through Southwick in return for GOP Senators getting out of the way on spending bills. This is absolutely the wrong type of compromise. Visit NoSouthwick.com to help us push Senators to vote NO on Southwick.

A moderate Senate Democrat is working behind the scenes to line up enough Democrats to force a confirmation vote on a contentious appellate court nominee, while winning concessions from Republicans in return.

Nebraska Democrat Ben Nelson is trying to corral at least 11 Democrats and nine Republicans for a deal that would in some ways echo the “Gang of 14” effort that averted a Senate implosion over judicial nominations in 2005. This time, though, Nelson has broadened his effort.

On one hand, he is trying to persuade Democrats to vote against a filibuster of the nomination of Leslie Southwick to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. But Nelson also wants Republicans to agree, in return, to not stand in the way of Senate action on fiscal 2008 spending bills.
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A floor vote by the Senate on Southwick that was expected today will not take place, according to a staffer in Sen. Feinstein’s office. No word on when it might be rescheduled.

And CaliforniaProgressReport.com published today a post by Alliance for Justice’s Doug Lakey, “Feinstein Asked by Civil Rights Community to Oppose Southwick Confirmation to US Court of Appeals.”

The editorial board of The New York Times launched a new blog yesterday with a post questioning Senator Dianne Feinstein’s support for Leslie Southwick, Bush’s nominee for New Orleans-based United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Judge Southwick “has the sort of record that should have made his nomination dead on arrival,” wrote the author. “Mississippi Judge Leslie Southwick, whose record includes decisions that have been labeled anti-black and anti-gay, is just the sort of Bush judicial nominee everyone thought would be blocked when Democrats retook the Senate. But Judge Southwick may be headed for confirmation thanks to Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat.”

Carrie Budoff Brown also blogged about our coalition’s efforts on politico.com:

“The other side is targeting Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Ca.), who cast the decisive vote in the Judiciary Committee that sent his nomination to the full Senate. A coalition that includes Alliance for Justice launched a petition and email campaign earlier this month, arguing that his record is hostile to gays and lesbians, workers and minorities. Videos have also been posted on YouTube.”

Other notable posts include those by Christy Hardin Smith on firedoglake.com, Brian Leubitz on calitics.com and Josh Richman on InsideBayArea.

Our NoSouthwick.com campaign presses along, but we still need your help to pressure Sen. Feinstein into opposing Southwick’s confirmation.

Visit NoSouthwick.com and check out our banner ads, YouTube videos, sign our petition and use the phone numbers we posted to call Sen. Feinstein’s office expressing your opposition to Southwick.

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