During Confirmation Hearings, Senate Urged to Question Pompeo on Key Human Rights Concerns

“From his inflammatory statements regarding Muslim Americans, to his positions rejecting equal rights for LGBT people, to his past support for torture, every American concerned with U.S. leadership on human rights should question Director Pompeo’s fitness to serve as America’s top diplomat,” said Human Rights First's Rob Berschinski. “Protections for human rights and democratic institutions are in retreat around the world in no small part due to the Trump Administration’s willful neglect of, and outright opposition to, leadership on these issues.

 

"At a minimum, Director Pompeo should use his confirmation hearing to renounce his earlier stances with respect to tolerance for minorities and other marginalized communities at home and abroad. He should further provide a full accounting of his views concerning whether U.S. leadership on human rights advances American security and prosperity, and the role that diplomacy should play in maintaining a stable international order. His nomination should be judged by the Senate accordingly.”