John Bush, a former anonymous conservative blogger, is now serving on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and is one of the least-qualified judicial appointments in history. His record is rife with extremism and he has expressed offensive positions on a wide range of issues. This cannot stand, and here are the facts:
- He has shown hostility towards reproductive freedom; he likened abortion to slavery, calling these issues “the two greatest tragedies in our country.” He applauded Mike Huckabee for saying he “strongly disagree[s]” with “the idea of same-sex marriage.” Writing about the 2016 election, Bush claimed that Democrats were just trying to “substitute woman for Black.”
- He has criticized campaign-finance reform efforts, writing “shouldn’t more money, not less, be spent on political speech, given how much is spent by advertising and commercial speech?”
- Regarding the Affordable Care Act, Bush celebrated that “the witch is dead” when he thought it might not be enacted. He has also indicated that he does not believe in climate change. In a blog post titled “Oink!,” Bush characterized essential programs that make it easier for women and children to afford groceries and protect themselves from violence as wasteful.
- Bush has shown that he would lack judicial independence. He weighed in on the 2016 presidential election, writing that Sen. Ted Cruz “exercise[d] remarkably poor judgement” when he did not endorse Trump. Bush applauded Sen. Mitch McConnell’s obstruction of Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland because “the decision of who will replace Justice Scalia … is the top reason why the choice between Trump and Hillary is a no brainer.”
- Bush lacks the temperament and judgement that are basic qualifications for a federal judge. He expressed offensive and hateful remarks on a blog while hiding behind a pseudonym. This is hardly the approach of someone who sincerely wants to contribute to policy discussions, and shows that he will be nothing more than a rubber stamp for Trump’s reckless and extreme agenda.