Grasz “Not Qualified” Rating Is No Shock

WASHINGTON, D.C., October 30 – In response to the announcement by the American Bar Association that Leonard Steven Grasz, nominated for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, has been deemed by ABA members “Not Qualified” for the position, AFJ President Nan Aron released the following statement:

“This poor ABA rating for Grasz should come as no shock to anyone who has watched the Trump Administration’s hasty, sloppy process for vetting and nominating individuals for the federal bench; in fact, the only surprise is that it doesn’t happen more often. Grasz is another Trump judicial nominee who seems to have been chosen primarily on the basis of his archconservative bona fides, and our AFJ research on his background reveals a record that is especially hostile to LGBTQ rights and women’s rights. He is also the second Trump judicial nominee to get an unqualified rating, after Charles Goodwin in Oklahoma. A lifetime appointment to the federal bench is a very serious matter and it’s time for the Trump Administration to stop nominating individuals whose records are so lacking in the qualities that are essential to this position.”