Indian American Jurist Neomi Rao confirmed |
In a 53-46 vote largely along party lines, the U.S. Senate confirmed Indian American jurist Neomi Rao to the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, the second-highest court in the nation. Rao`s confirmation came amid a good deal of opposition from Indian American women who challenged the new judge`s views on date rape, which seemingly blamed victims, and her attempts to roll back protections for sexual assault victims at high schools and colleges. A day earlier, several women held a rally in front of the Supreme Court, fiercely opposing Rao`s nomination.The Senate confirmation vote came after two female senators, Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii; and Maggie Hassan, D-New Hampshire, expressed their serious concerns about the nominee. Rao currently heads up the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs at the Office of Management and Budget, and is known as Trump`s regulatory czar.Hirono noted that Rao had used her position at OIRA to strip away environmental protections. “She supported efforts to replace a clean power plan which would have reduced greenhouse gas emissions with a rule that would increase air pollution and could lead up to 1,400 additional premature deaths,” noted Hirono.
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