Jesse Jackson: As Attorney General, Sessions Would Roll Back Civil Rights (VIDEO)

Of President-elect Donald Trump’s horrifying cabinet picks, putting Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions in the spot of Attorney General is one of the scariest. This is the same man who said that the “KKK is OK.”

Civil Rights activist Jesse Jackson wrote an opinion column about Sessions for the Chicago Sun-Times. His confirmation hearings will begin on January 10, which is very close to the inauguration. Jackson remarks that Republicans are trying to push these nominations through quickly, before Americans realize how bad he is for the country and have an opportunity to object.

Over 200 civil rights and women’s rights groups among others released a joint statement on this issue saying:

“Sen. Sessions has a 30-year record of racial insensitivity, bias against immigrants, disregard for the rule of law and hostility to the protection of civil rights that makes him unfit to serve as the attorney general of the United States.”

The Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee denied Sessions a federal judgeship after Ronald Reagan nominated him. He once denounced the American Civil Liberties Unions (ACLU) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as being “un-American.”

The Attorney General is a very powerful position, and serves as the chief legal officer in the country. The Judiciary Act of 1789 gives the Attorney General these powers:

“… To prosecute and conduct all suits in the Supreme Court in which the United States shall be concerned, and to give his advice and opinion upon questions of law when required by the president of the United States, or when requested by the heads of any of the departments.”

The Attorney General is the head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and other intelligence agencies, as well as the immigration court system.

Jackson points out that we have made a lot of progress in the area of Civil Rights in the last 50 years, and Sessions could undo a lot of that.

Jackson said this about it:

“He was one of the first and few Republican senators to endorse Donald Trump. His nomination is no doubt a return favor. But as attorney general, Sessions will drive this country apart, exacerbate racial tensions, trample basic rights and endanger the public belief in the rule of law. Senators in both parties should make it clear that this country has no desire to turn its back on five-decade of progress.”

We will have to fight back against the hatred of Trump and his administration.

Featured image via Twitter.

Hi, I'm from Huntsville, AL. I'm a Liberal living in the Bible Belt, which can be quite challenging at times. I'm passionate about many issues including mental health, women's rights, gay rights, and many others. Check out my blog weneedtotalkaboutmentalhealth.com