The U.S. Senate moved ahead today with an effort to force through four controversial judicial nominees to lifetime appointments to federal courts of appeals.

This afternoon, the Senate confirmed the first of these nominees, Amy Coney Barrett, for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, and is now pushing ahead with the nomination of Joan Larsen for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

Sharon McGowan, Lambda Legal’s Director of Strategy, issued the following statement:

"With the nation focused on escalating controversies surrounding the White House, the administration is quietly advancing one of the most damaging and dangerous parts of its agenda: stacking our courts with anti-LGBT extremists whose influence will extend far beyond this administration. This week, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is hastily advancing four of Trump's judicial nominees to lifetime appointments on the federal bench.

“As we know, the courts have been the only backstop to Trump's unconstitutional and irrational executive actions – such as his directive to ban military service by patriotic transgender Americans. If Donald Trump succeeds in packing the courts with judges who share his hostility to civil rights, we will lose one of the only remaining checks our nation has on his virtually unlimited powers, and the consequences will be felt for decades to come.

“This administration has made no secret of its desire to seize control of our courts, and the leadership of the Senate is actively conspiring with the President to make it happen, at the expense of all Americans who count on fair and impartial courts. The stakes couldn’t be higher, and therefore, we must remain as focused on this as ever other issue."

Read Lambda Legal’s letter of opposition to these nominees here.