Nov 1, 2007 -- Roll Call Letters: FEC Fight Continues
By Gerry Hebert

In his guest opinion ("Von Spakovsky Deserves Senate Confirmation," October 29, 2007), Bradley Smith dismisses the controversy over the nomination of Hans von Spakovsky to the FEC as "playing politics." The controversy has never been about politics. From day one it has been a civil rights issue because the nominee had a shameful record of vote suppression while working at the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.

Smith does not dispute von Spakovsky's disgraceful performance at DOJ; he conveniently ignores it. And he demeans the civil rights community by claiming, as he did in interviews last week, that its opposition is ginned up. Von Spakovsky's controversial work at Justice prompted the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights to take a position on an FEC nomination for the first time ever. The organization, representing groups from the AARP and NOW to the ACLU and the National Council of La Raza, has strongly condemned the nomination. Senate offices nationwide are receiving calls from constituents and local chapters of organizations like the NAACP, MALDEF and Common Cause. This is hardly the tempest in a teapot described by Mr. Smith. Senators Obama and Feingold are to be commended for putting a hold on this nominee. Their opposition is based on precisely the same concerns as civil rights organizations have expressed. It's not Senators who are playing politics. It's President Bush for pushing a nominee with a shameful civil rights record and for failing to put forward a consensus nominee.

The outrage over this nomination grows daily as citizens, organizations and Senators become aware of how von Spakovsky injected partisan considerations into enforcement of federal voting rights laws. A number of DOJ political appointees with whom von Spakovsky worked hand-in-glove have resigned in shame. Yet von Spakovsky gets rewarded with a nomination to sit on a panel interpreting and implementing our nation's election laws. Poor and shameful job performance should result in termination, Mr. Smith, not promotion.