Democrats and Human Rights Activists Protest Trump's Proposed Senior Officials

Following Donald Trump's decision to appoint Jeff Sessions, Senator from Alabama, as Attorney General and Mike Pompeo, Representative from Kansas, as head of the CIA, some sources report 'anger' among members of the U.S. Congress and protests from human rights activists regarding this process. According to the New York Times, Ron Wyden, a Democratic Senator from Oregon, announced on Friday, November 18, that the Democrats' reaction to this news was 'immediate and furious.' Mr. Wyden added, 'The group that the President-elect has chosen to lead the White House is the essence of the most divisive parts of his campaign rhetoric.' Mike Pompeo is noted as a serious opponent of the nuclear agreement with Iran, having expressed his eagerness to cancel this agreement just a day prior on Twitter. Jeff Sessions, a close ally of Trump, strongly supports Trump's promise to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and opposes illegal immigrants obtaining U.S. citizenship. Previously, Trump's choice for National Security Advisor was also announced, which is Michael Flynn, the former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency. According to the British newspaper The Guardian, human rights activists condemned Trump's decision to assign key posts to Pompeo, Sessions, and Flynn, stating that these appointments could nullify 'decades of progress' towards racial equality in the U.S. These activists also warned that Trump's new appointments could effectively lead to the legalization of torture in America. Pompeo and Sessions have previously made harsh statements regarding racial issues, immigrants, Islam, and the use of torture, while Mr. Flynn has referred to Islam as a 'malignant cancer.' According to The Guardian, Sherrilyn Ifill, President of the 'Legal Defense and Educational Fund of the NAACP,' one of the main civil rights organizations in the U.S., has expressed strong criticism, particularly against Jeff Sessions' appointment. Sherrilyn Ifill stated that 'Jeff Sessions has a long-standing history of opposing civil rights and equality from the beginning of his career as a prosecutor to his current role as a senator.' She added that 'it is unimaginable that the main leadership of national law enforcement could be entrusted to such a person with these civil rights laws.' Sessions, who has been in the U.S. Senate since 1997, was the first senator to support Trump's campaign against the status quo. A Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to decide on Jeff Sessions' confirmation for the position of Attorney General in January. A liberal lobbying group called 'People for the American Way' called for protests outside the U.S. Capitol on Friday, demanding that senators vote against him 'in light of Sessions' long history of biased policies and statements.' Sessions had previously appeared before a Senate committee for a judicial position during Ronald Reagan's presidency, but the committee voted against him. According to The Guardian, the reason for this negative vote was that former colleagues of Mr. Sessions testified that he used a derogatory term equivalent to 'nigger' to refer to black people, called one black deputy 'boy,' and stated that the Ku Klux Klan was 'a good group until I found out that they smoked pot'; however, Mr. Sessions denies these allegations. While Jeff Sessions and Mike Pompeo now need to gain Senate approval to assume the positions of Attorney General and CIA Director, Michael Flynn does not require Senate approval to serve as National Security Advisor.