Natalie Silver, a political consultant, submitted this open letter on behalf of more than 200 Vermont attorneys, including Vermont State Treasurer Mike Pieciak and Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark. Signatories from Windham County include Robb Alan Spensley, James Rodgers, William E. Kraham, Sharon L. Annis, and Bettina V. Buehler.
BURLINGTON-We, the undersigned Vermont lawyers, write to express our commitment to upholding the rule of law, and to protest and decry the current administration's disdain for the rule of law as revealed in its actions:
• It pardoned the Jan. 6 rioters who violently attempted to prevent Congress from carrying out its Constitutional duty to certify the election; and exacted revenge on prosecutors who obeyed their oath to enforce the law.
• It has defied the orders of federal judges, in violation of the separation of powers, which is a central pillar of our democracy.
• It has illegally attempted to destroy and eviscerate government agencies created by Congress and illegally fired thousands of federal employees.
• It has impounded congressionally appropriated funds at federal agencies in violation of federal law.
• It has sought to undermine the freedom of the press by filing frivolous lawsuits as retribution for negative coverage.
• It has arrested, detained, and deported individuals without due process of law.
• It has sought to punish law firms that represent parties who have taken positions which are adverse to the current administration and president.
• It has misused the Department of Justice to retaliate against lawyers who have represented persons and organizations that oppose the actions of the administration.
• It closed the U.S. Agency for International Development in violation of federal law.
• It has proclaimed that judges with whom the administration disagrees should be impeached.
• It has outlawed expressions of support for racial and gender equality.
• It has illegally purged historical facts and documents from government archives in an attempt to obliterate our nation's history.
• It has used the IRS to gain access to millions of Americans' personal financial information.
• It is threatening Americans' Social Security benefits in violation of federal law.
• It has conducted private, for-profit business inside the White House and invited corruption and bribery into the inner sanctum of the United States government.
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These abuses can be stopped if legions of Vermonters and Americans reaffirm that we are a nation of laws and that the most powerful and wealthy Americans must also abide by these laws.
We invite all to rally and demand that our elected representatives act now to stop the administration's unlawful actions. We call on all Vermonters to join us as we protest the administration's unprecedented assault on the rule of law.
"The principle of guaranteed fundamental rights of individuals under the law is the heart and sinew of our Nation, and distinguishes our governmental system from the type of government that rules by might alone," wrote President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1958.
Please join us and stand up for the rule of law at a rally on Saturday, May 3 at noon in Burlington. If you would like to attend the rally, or you are an attorney in Vermont and you would like to add your name to this letter, please fill out the form at 810-vt-lawyers. The list of signatories will be updated daily until the rally.
This Voices Open Letter was submitted to The Commons.
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