Hillary Clinton: My Supreme Court nominees will stand up for LGBT rights
Democratic Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton has pledged to appoint pro-LGBT justices to the Supreme Court, as Donald Trump faces criticism for planning to put ultra-conservatives on the court.
Republican candidate Donald Trump previously told evangelicals he would “consider” a push to overturn same-sex marriage via the appointment of conservative Supreme Court justices.
Earlier this month, Trump confirmed that he would appoint justices in the mould of the late Antonin Scalia, who opposed the decriminalisation of sodomy and penned a blistering dissent against the equal marriage ruling.
RightWingWatch recently reported that nearly every Supreme Court candidate mooted by Trump is an extreme anti-LGBT conservative.
In last night’s Presidential debate, Clinton pledged to appoint justices who will respect LGBT rights.
She said: “When we talk about the Supreme Court it really raises the central issue in this election, namely, what kind of country are we going to be? What kind of opportunities will we provide for our citizens?
“What kind of rights will Americans have? And I feel strongly that the Supreme Court needs to stand on the side of the American people, not on the side of the powerful corporations and the wealthy.
“For me, that means that we need a Supreme Court that will stand up on behalf of women’s rights, on behalf of the rights of the LGBT community, that will stand up and say no to Citizens United, a decision that has undermined the election system in the country because of the way it permits dark, unaccountable money to come into our electoral system.
“I have major disagreements with my opponent about these issues and others that will be before the Supreme Court, but I feel that at this point in our country’s history, it is important that we not reverse marriage equality, that we not reverse Roe v. Wade, that we stand up against Citizens United, we stand up for the rights of people in the workplace, that we stand up and basically say the Supreme Court should represent all of us.
“That’s how I see the court, and the kind of people that I would be looking to nominate to the court would be in the great tradition of standing up to the powerful, standing up on behalf of our rights as Americans, and I look forward to having that opportunity.”
Trump doubled down on his plan to appoint conservatives.
He said: “I feel that the justices that I am going to appoint — and I’ve named 20 of them — the justices that I’m going to appoint will be pro-life, they will have a conservative bent, they will be protecting the Second Amendment, they are great scholars in all cases, and they’re people of tremendous respect. They will interpret the Constitution the way the founders wanted it interpreted.
“And I believe that’s very, very important. I don’t think we should have justices appointed that decide what they want to hear.”
Later in the debate, Mr Trump made false claims that gay people are “thrown off buildings” in Qatar, while attacking the Clinton Foundation for working with foreign governments on human rights.
He claimed: “Saudi Arabia giving $25 million, Qatar, all of these companies. You talk about women and women’s rights. So these are people that push gays off buildings. These are people that kill women and treat women horribly. And yet you take their money.”
While Qatar maintains an archaic sodomy law, Trump’s allegation that gay people are “thrown off buildings” in the country is a lie.
