LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Putting Sessions in charge would be ‘gross mistake’

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is an open letter to U.S. Sens Chris Coons and Thomas Carper: I write to you with grave concern over the future of the country, and what appears to be an incoming administration which wants to erase all the progress which we have made in the last half-century and longer to create a more civil society. As my senator you are in a position to shape this administration by opposing some of the most outrageous proposed Cabinet recommendations, including, but not limited to, Sen. Jeff Sessions. If you recall, Sen. Sessions was rejected in 1986 by the Senate when he was recommended for justice of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama. Now he is being recommended as the top law enforcement officer of the land. He has a history which should disqualify him from this position. He opposes aspects of the Voting Rights Act of ’65 which prevents voter suppression. He opposes gay marriage. He has a history of racism, so much so that NAACP gave him a zero rating. He opposes hate-crime legislation. I know, having myself spent twenty-five years working on Capitol Hill, that there is usually a courtesy to support colleagues when they are recommended for appointments involving Senate approval, but asking Sen. Sessions to be attorney general smacks us, who have fought for human and civil rights, in the face. I have spent my entire life, as you have, fighting for people’s rights. It would be a gross mistake to vote in favor of Sen. Sessions.

Peter Schott Rehoboth Beach