As President-elect Trump undertakes the process of selecting his cabinet members and other high-ranking administration officials, it is imperative that nominees support the U.S. Constitution, embody American ideals of inclusion and respect for all individuals, uphold our democratic processes and institutions, and respect our nation’s human rights obligations. While each of the undersigned organizations has additional priorities and will respond to the incoming administration accordingly, we all believe that potential cabinet members and senior administration appointees should adhere to the following principles:
Adherence to the U.S. Constitution
Nominees for Senate-confirmed positions who support taking actions or enacting policies that are objectively unconstitutional, and especially provisions designed to undermine individual liberties and equal protection under the law, should be deemed unsuitable for those positions by the Senate. An example of such an action would be implementing a ban on people of a specific faith entering the country or advocating policies that violate the civil rights or liberties of any particular group of people.
Adherence to the Rule of Law and Human Rights Obligations
Nominees for Senate-confirmed positions who support taking actions or enacting policies that would violate U.S. laws or international conventions protecting human rights to which the United States is a signatory should be deemed unsuitable for those positions by the Senate. A willingness or desire to order the use of torture would fall into this category. The same standard for unsuitability would also apply to any nominee who has previously been involved in authorizing or implementing human rights or civil liberties violations.
Alliance for Citizenship
Amnesty International USA
Brooklyn for Peace
Center for Gender & Refugee Studies
Center for Victims of Torture
Church World Service
Human Rights First
Human Rights Initiative of North Texas
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service
National Council of Jewish Women
National Religious Campaign Against Torture
North Carolina Stop Torture Now
Peace Action
Peace Action Bay Ridge
Presbyterian Church (USA)
The Advocates for Human Rights
USC International Human Rights Clinic
UUSC: Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
Voices for Progress
Win Without War
Women's Action for New Directions