Jersey City Councilmen Yousef Saleh and James Solomon are defending U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit nominee Adeel Mangi, who would be the country’s first Muslim federal judge if approved, over Islamaphobic attacks.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“It is beyond the pale that Senate Democrats are quietly murmuring that Adeel Mangi won’t get confirmed to the federal bench, instead of uniting and ushering in his confirmation. Mr. Mangi is a brilliant lawyer whose firm belief in our Constitution and the right of every American to receive a fair and impartial trial has guided every legal decision he has made,” Solomon said in a statement.
“To question his exemplary record reeks of racism and Islamophobia, and while Republicans may not be above that, Democrats should be. As such, I am proud to co-sponsor a resolution with Councilman Yousef Saleh calling for the Senate to confirm Mr. Mangi. There would be no better judge to champion the law in the Third Circuit, than one of North Jersey’s best.”
Yesterday, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) was the first Democrat to says he would vote against Mangi’s confirmation, since he is an advisory board member with the Alliance of Families for Justice, as Reuters first reported.
Cortez Mastro, along with several law enforcement organizations and Republican senators, have said the group supports cop killers, while AFJ says they advocate for families impacted by mass incarceration.
In an opinion piece published Tuesday, the New York Times wrote that Mangi is the victim of an Islamaphobic smear campaign meant to divide Democrats, noting that, for example, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) asked him in December if he condemned Hamas.
“The Islamophobic attacks against the professionally renowned and respected Adeel Mangi by a handful of gremlins in the Senate should not be tolerated. This is a clarion call for ALL Democrats and any Republicans of conscience and principle to stand up and fight against these McCarthy-esque attacks and show the world what American values and the US Constitution stands for,” added Saleh, who is also Muslim.
“I am proud to cosponsor this legislation with Councilman Solomon and defend Adeel Mangi, one of the pillars in our Jersey City community and especially in the field of law.”
The next regular meeting of the Jersey City Council is on Wednesday, April 10th.
