Chair Harkin, center, talks with EEOC nominees, l-r, Lopez, Lipnic, Berrien and Feldblum following their confirmation hearing this morning.
The most heated moment at this morning’s confirmation hearing for President Barack Obama’s nominees for three spots on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, as well as their counsel, came in quiet, measured tones. Commissioner nominee Chai Feldblum responded to a friendly question from Committee Chair Tom Harkin: “I do not support polygamy.”
Sen. Lamar Alexander later asked chair nominee Jacqueline Berrien about an EEOC lawsuit challenging the Salvation Army’s English-only requirement in Boston. Senator Enzi, the Ranking Member of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions, engaged in a brief, non-confrontational exchange with Feldblum regarding religious freedoms. But despite those questions, the friendly questioning from Harkin to Feldblum was the closest the “culture wars” came to erupting at this morning’s hearing.
The question came up because of a petition that Feldblum had signed titled, “Beyond Same-Sex Marriage: A New Strategic Vision for All Our Families & Relationships.” The line in the petition that led to Harkin’s question comes from a set of “alternative” relationships of which the petition asks: “[W]ho among us seriously will argue that the following kinds of households are less socially, economically, and spiritually worthy?”
Among the 10 examples in the petition, which include “blended families” and “adult children living with and caring for their parents,” is “committed, loving households in which there is more than one conjugal partner.”
Harkin said that the example “sounds like polygamy” to him and, saying that he never knew that Feldblum supported polygamy, asked if she could explain.
EEOC Chair nominee Berrien, right, addresses the Committee, as commissioner nominee Feldblum looks on.
Feldblum began, initially, by stating unambiguously, “I do not support polygamy.” She went on to say that it was a “mistake” to sign the petition and told the Committee that it was for that reason that she asked for her name to be removed from it. Ben Smith at Politico reported on Wednesday that Feldblum had sent a letter to the petition organizers asking that her name be removed.
Harkin pushed further, asking her to explain why she had signed on to the statement in the first place. Feldblum stated that she had been asked to sign on to the petition by “another academic from Columbia.” She said, “I agreed with the general thrust of the statement,” and that her work at the time was very focused on efforts to “support the range of caregiving relationships.” It was for that reason, she said, that she signed on in support of the petition.
She concluded, though, “However, the statement goes beyond what I would have said. That’s why it was a mistake to sign it and why I asked for my name to be removed.”
Senator Enzi later asked Feldblum whether she would “take actions [as a commissioner] to support the religious exemptions in Title VII and ENDA, if enacted.” In her opening statement, Feldblum had discussed her strong views in support of religious liberty that came of her family’s history, including her father’s history as a Holocaust survivor. As she stated, “I don’t know how someone can grow up the daughter of a Holocaust survivor without appreciating the values of principles of pluralism and tolerance.”
In terms of the religious exemptions, Feldblum said, “As a legal matter, I think it is important that religious exemptions are enforced.” She said that she was “very confident strongly supporting that exemption” in Title VII and noted that the religious exemption in ENDA, with which she also was comfortable enforcing, was even more broad than that found in Title VII.
EEOC commissioner nominees Lipnic and Feldblum, following this morning's confirmation hearing.
The nominee for commissioner recommended by Sen. Mitch McConnell, Victoria Lipnic, received no directed questions from the committee, and the same was true for counsel nominee David Lopez, who is a longtime EEOC and Justice Department lawyer.
Sen. Hagan did find a topic on which all of the nominees were willing to hold forth: how to make the agency seem less of an “opponent” to people of her state (and, presumably, the nation). As Hagan said, “What can we do to change the conversation and help people see the EEOC as an ally in the fight against discrimination?”
Lipnic, interestingly, responded that, “I think you first have to keep in mind, it is a regulatory enforcement agency.” She then countered herself, by stating that because the process of litigation can be very “disruptive” to a business, “enforcement agencies have to be very conscious of the authority they bring to bear” — a point that got Feldblum nodding in agreement.
All three commission nominees expressed a strong interest in avoiding litigation at every stage, whether through — as stressed by Berrien — education before a problem even arises or — as Lipnic said — the conciliation process once a problem has arisen.
The HELP Committee still needs to vote on whether to recommend the four nominees to the full Senate for consideration.
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Chris Geidner is a lawyer in Washington, D.C., who writes at Law Dork, contributes regularly to Metro Weekly and has written for The Atlantic Online, Advocate.com, Salon and other publications. An extended biography can be found
Hmm — at what point did Feldblum ask for her name to be removed? Before or after the petition was published as a full-page ad in the NYTimes?
According to Ben Smith, she asked earlier this month for her name to be removed.
So at the point she knew she was being nominated for a position requiring Senate confirmation? That doesn’t come off as very sincere, unfortunately. And it’s not as though the petition was some sort of chain e-mail that went unpublicized until recently.
Who cares about polygamy? People should be able to live how they want and the government should tax everyone equally. Nobody should be expected to live their lives to please the government!
Chai Feldblum is one of the most non-dogmatic, open-minded, progressive intellectuals. Although there is no doubt that she is somewhat “left of center”, that reflects the President’s own philosophy, and those views are far from radical or extreme left. Anyone who has met Feldblum and heard her speak over the past several years is well aware that she is among the very few people “left of center” who has been willing to engage in dialogue, appear before, and subject herself to questions from people and organizations with very different views. For example, how many people with her views would appear before the Family Research Council or Republican activists — as she did. Further, those who know her also realize that her openness to accommodate religious beliefs of others is not only an intellectual exercise for her, but it is also part of her core beliefs. The arguments against her are based on taking her past words out of context, or upon her signing a somewhat vague petition that has been interpreted as supporting polygamy (the petition did NOT explicitly propose polygamy) — a petition that she admits she should have read more carefully and that does not reflect her own views which are limited to legal recognition of two-person relationships (opposite sex or same sex). She would be an excellent addition to the EEOC and will be a strong voice for rational, intellectually-based interpretation and application of the law.