On October 21, 1998, my uncle, the Honorable Judge John David Kelly of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, died. His death was a huge personal loss for my family and me and a great loss to the citizens of the United States.
John was the youngest of my mother's family and the only boy. I'm sure he was spoiled, but no one would ever own up to it. Throughout most of my life, he was an attorney in Fargo, North Dakota; one who frequently fought for the rights of private citizens against those of corporations. Eventually, he became president of his law firm and then in 1996, his name was submitted to Clinton for consideration for nomination to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals. Clinton subsequently nominated him and the Senate confirmed his nomination on July 31, 1998. Tragically, his time on the bench was short-lived, as he died prematurely only a few months after his confirmation.
What I remember most about Uncle John was his booming voice. I don't know if he ever spoke quietly. Surely he must have, but every time I was around him, his voice seemed to take up the whole room. As a child, I thought he was funny, but also scary. When my own father died prematurely, he provided much-needed moral support for my mother and became a surrogate father for the rest of us, especially my younger brother, who was only 8 at the time.
Following Dad's death, Uncle John would bring his family out to Wyoming in the summer for vacation - to form what he joyfully called "Camp Kelly." He would put on his baseball cap and round up his own 3 sons and my younger brother, take them fishing and/or hiking and then in the evening, collapse and bark orders at the rest of us from his comfortable chair.
At his funeral, aspects of him - especially as a youth - that I had never known came to light, such as the time the garden hose was stuffed in the mail slot of the neighbor's house and flooded the house. There was also the mysterious disappearance of the skeleton from the Deaconess Hospital nursing home that equally mysteriously reappeared with appropriately installed vigil lights and cigarette smoke in the attic of St. Mary's Church. I learned of his prowess as a "single parent" (when my aunt was serving in the North Dakota state legislature): a good drink in front of him, watching the MacNeil-Lehrer Report, a cigar in one hand, a walkie-talkie in the other hand, and a child-size fireman's hat on his head, while his youngest was systematically moving his Tonka trucks all over the house to one of the 4-alarm fires that were pretending to rage.
After his death, there were articles written about him in the newspapers and letters sent to our family. The recurring theme of these spoke to his brilliant intellect, his sense of compassion, and his absolute commitment to fairness. It was frequently said that he set a standard of excellence and professionalism that guided other lawyers. What was always apparent to me was that he was - above all else, a lawyer who believed in fairness. He believed firmly in the judicial system in our country, though he knew it was flawed. He felt strongly that only by fighting within the system could we make any progress towards achieving equality and justice for everyone.
Thus it is with a heavy heart that I await the results of the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on the nomination of William Haynes for the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. His confirmation will so utterly undermine everything John believed in and fought for throughout his life and would be catastrophic for the judicial system of this country.
With this in mind, I ask the community of daily kos to become active in opposing his confirmation.
As has been frequently cited, "The only thing needed for evil to prosper is for good men to do nothing." (Edmund Burke) I know this community consists of good men and women. Please do not do nothing.
The contact information is here:
Patrick J. Leahy (D-VT)
[Ranking Member]
202-224-4242 202-224-3479
[http://leahy.senate.gov/...]
Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA)
202-224-4543 202-224-2417
[http://kennedy.senate.gov/...]
Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE)
202-224-5042 202-224-0139
[http://biden.senate.gov/...]
Herb Kohl (D-WI)
202-224-5653 202-224-9787
[http://kohl.senate.gov/...]
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
202-224-3841 202-228-3954
[http://feinstein.senate.gov/...]
Charles Schumer (D-NY)
202-224-6542 202-228-3027
[http://www.senate.gov/...]
Russell D. Feingold (D-WI)
202-224-5323 202-224-2725
[http://feingold.senate.gov/...]
Richard J. Durbin (D-IL)
202-224-2152 202-228-0400
[http://durbin.senate.gov/...]
Majority Members (Republicans)'
Arlen Specter (R-PA) [Chairman]
202-224-4254 202-228-1229
[http://specter.senate.gov/...]
Orrin G. Hatch (R-UT)
202-224-5251 202-224-6331
[http://hatch.senate.gov/...]
Charles E. Grassley (R-IA)
202-224-3744 202-224-6020
[http://grassley.senate.gov/...]
Jon Kyl (R-AZ)
202-224-4521 202-224-2207
[http://kyl.senate.gov/...]
Mike DeWine (R-OH)
202-224-2315 202-224-6519
[http://dewine.senate.gov/]
Jeff Sessions (R-AL)
202-224-4124 202-224-3149
[http://sessions.senate.gov/...]
Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
202-224-5972 202-224-3808
[http://www.senate.gov/...]
John Cornyn (R-TX)
202-224-2934 202-228-2856
[http://cornyn.senate.gov/...]
Sam Brownback (R-KS)
202-224-6521 202-228-1265
[http://brownback.senate.gov/...]
Tom Coburn (R-OK)
202-224-5754 202-224-6008
[http://coburn.senate.gov/...]
OR you can take action at the following websites:
[http://www.pfaw.org]
[http://humanrightsfirst.org]