A civil rights group on Thursday called on members of the Senate Judiciary Committee to question Attorney General Jeff Sessions at an oversight hearing next month about the Department of Justice’s connection to President Trump’s voter fraud commission.
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Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, urged the senators in a statement to “closely examine evidence” that DOJ’s Civil Rights Division is engaged in collusion with the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity.
“The goals of the Commission are fully antithetical to the mission of the Division, which is charged with fighting — not prompting — voter suppression,” she said.
Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) announced on Wednesday that Sessions is scheduled to appear before the Senate committee for DOJ’s annual hearing on Oct. 18.
Trump created the commission to investigate his claims of voter fraud in last year’s presidential election.
The Lawyers’ Committee has sued the commission for documents relating to the group’s work.
“With significant evidence of politicization at the Department and within the Civil Rights Division in particular, it is critical the Senate Judiciary Committee fulfills its oversight role,” Clarke said.
“The work of the Civil Rights Division is uniquely important, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions must be held accountable for the dramatic changes that have taken place on his watch, which have brought federal civil rights enforcement to a virtual grinding halt,” she said.