Facebook and Law Firms Under Fire, Accused of 'Rebuilding' Kavanaugh's Image
A liberal group is attacking Facebook and a variety of major law firms for their support of the Federalist Society, which recently featured Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh as the main speaker at its annual dinner.
The campaign is part of the effort of Demand Justice to fight back against President Donald Trump’s success in getting conservative judges appointed to federal court vacancies, The Associated Press reported last week.
The group, called Demand Justice, is led by Brian Fallon, who served as Hillary Clinton’s press secretary. The Federalist Society is a group of conservative lawyers and judges.
Facebook is also being attacked for being a Gold Circle sponsor of the event where Kavanaugh spoke in mid-November, according to a news release posted to the website of Demand Justice before Kavanaugh’s speech.
Demand Justice says the ads are the beginning of a sustained campaign “to hold accountable” those who help the Federalist Society “rehabilitate a sexual predator and attack the rule of law.”
“Trump is larding up the judiciary with people who are loyal to him,” Fallon said, according to the AP.
He said the ads only use the same tactics conservatives have employed for years.
“The other side has been playing for keeps when it comes to the courts for a long time,” he said. “Democrats need to get back in the game.”
The Federalist group “is a successful network of conservatives and conservative lawyers that are very effective,” Carrie Severino, a Federalist Society member and policy director of the conservative Judicial Crisis Network, said, according to Fox News.
Liberal critics “don’t like that,” said Severino, co-author of the book “Justice on Trial: The Kavanaugh Confirmation and the Future of the Supreme Court.”
Demand Justice, however, claims that Facebook and the law firms that support the Federalist Society are rehabilitating the reputation of Kavanaugh.
“Facebook should not be sponsoring the rehabbing of Brett Kavanaugh’s reputation when Dr. Blasey Ford remains unable to resume a normal life after bravely coming forward last year. You can claim to respect survivors of sexual assault or you can pay for a celebration of Brett Kavanaugh, but you can’t do both. Any organization that doesn’t want to be complicit in normalizing Kavanaugh should withdraw its support from The Federalist Society and pledge not to give in the future,” said Katie O’Connor, senior counsel for Demand Justice, according to The Hill.
Facebook was labeled a tool of the right by one Demand Justice leader.
“Over the last few years, Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook have become critical cogs in the right-wing propaganda machine – spreading lies and dangerous levels of vitriolic misinformation to American voters,” said Shaunna Thomas, co-founder and executive director of Ultra Violet, in the Demand Justice news release.
“That’s why it is hardly surprising that Facebook is a major corporate donor to The Federalist Society – an organization dedicated to taking our courts in a radical, right-wing direction. But it should terrify everyone that Facebook is actively funding the public rehabilitation of a serial sexual abuser who should not be serving on the Supreme Court. Facebook’s unabashed support of The Federalist Society and Brett Kavanaugh sends a clear signal to survivors everywhere – that Facebook is not on their side. Shame on Facebook and shame on Mark Zuckerberg,” Thomas said.
The ads on Facebook and LinkedIn feature Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, who accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault while both were in high school, a claim he repeatedly denied.
“The Federalist Society is rebuilding Kavanaugh’s image” the ads claim, according to the AP.
The ads come as another Senate battle over a court nominee is expected. This time, the individual is Sarah Pitlyk, a former Kavanaugh clerk whose nomination is opposed by pro-abortion groups.
During his Nov. 14 speech to the Federalist Society, Kavanaugh talked about the grueling confirmation ordeal that he, his family, and his supporters endured, according to Time.
“There’s a saying that adversity introduces a man to himself,” Kavanaugh said. “It also reveals your true friends. I’m a lucky man to have a lot of friends. Through the good days and the bad, I never felt alone.
“My friends paid a heavy price. Way too heavy a price. I’m well aware of that and it pains me daily. I signed up for what I knew would be an ugly process — maybe not that ugly. But my friends did not,” he said.
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