Message from ACS President Russ Feingold
Dear ACS Partners,
At year’s end 2020, I promised you that this would be the most consequential year for the American Constitution Society in the organization’s history. I write to you now to say, indeed it was!
Over the past year, we have expanded our staff, launched new initiatives, and built new partnerships for one reason: the progressive legal movement has never been more important than it is right now, as we defend against rising threats to our democratic legitimacy - this includes to the credibility of our courts.
One of ACS’s core tenets is that courts matter. We know that who sits on our courts matters, and we believe that our courts should reflect the diversity of the public they serve. We proved that this year by providing the White House and Senators with hundreds of names of diverse, qualified candidates for the federal bench. We are the only organization with a nationwide grassroots presence that is building this progressive pipeline of lawyers.
The Biden-Harris administration has met the moment and prioritized the nomination of diverse judicial candidates. The Senate followed suit by confirming candidates at a record pace. We are continuing to identify candidates and work with the White House and the Senate to fill every vacancy that arises on the federal bench.
We know this is not enough when we have a Supreme Court that has been packed by the Right and that, as a result, we can no longer trust to uphold our constitutional rights or the guardrails of our democracy. This is why ACS stepped up to call for structural and non-structural Supreme Court reform. We will continue to call for such reform until we again have a credible Court that fulfills its mission by protecting and upholding judicial norms, constitutional rights, and our democratic legitimacy.
I am grateful to be a part of an organization that is on the frontlines of preserving our democratic legitimacy, and I thank you for your ongoing support.
Warmly,
Russ Feingold
ACS President