The Penn signatories to the letter were Mitchell Berman, Jessica Feierman, Jonah B. Gelbach, Sarah Barringer Gordon, Serena Mayeri, Jennifer Nagda and David Rudovsky. | DP File Photo
Seven professors at Penn Law School signed a letter to Congress on Tuesday opposing President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) as attorney general. The signatories included more than 1,100 professors of law from around the country.
Sessions, a third-term senator from Alabama, was announced as Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Justice on Nov. 18. The existence of the letter, addressed to the ranking members of the Senate's Judiciary Committee, was first reported by The Washington Post.
The letter is slated to run as a full-paper ad in advance of Sessions’ confirmation hearing on Jan. 10 and 11.
The Penn signatories to the letter were Mitchell Berman, Jessica Feierman, Jonah Gelbach, Sarah Barringer Gordon, Serena Mayeri, Jennifer Nagda and David Rudovsky. The signatories included representatives from a total of 170 schools across 48 states.
"We are convinced that Jeff Sessions will not fairly enforce our nation’s laws and promote justice and equality in the United States," the letter read. "We urge you to reject his nomination."
The letter cited concerns over Sessions' role in the prosecution of three civil rights activists for voter fraud in Alabama in 1985 as well as his role in the "consistent promotion of the myth of voter-impersonation fraud."
It went on to mention his support for building a wall along the country's border with Mexico, as well as his views on drug policies, climate change and LGBTQ rights.
Penn spokesman Stephen J. MacCarthy offered no comment on the matter.
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