April 27, 2012

SandBoxBlogs: The BLT "ACLU Hires Republican to Lobby on Criminal Justice"

"In a move intended to bolster the organization's influence with congressional Republicans, the American Civil Liberties Union has hired LeClairRyan partner and former federal prosecutor Michael Volkov to lobby on a range of issues.

Laura W. Murphy, director of the ACLU's Washington legislative office, said Volkov, a Republican, will promote the organization's stance on the Voting Rights Act, the National Defense Authorization Act and criminal justice issues including mandatory minimum sentences and prison overcrowding.

The ACLU is "absolutely" looking to harness increasing popular support for libertarian and conservative ideas about the limits of government and individual rights to privacy in advancing its mission, Murphy said. In the past, the organization has been criticized from both sides of the aisle for stances it has taken on various issues—a result Murphy pinned on its nonpartisan approach.

"I think a lot of people are ill-informed or misinformed about how well we navigate working with the two parties," Murphy said. "We can't emphasize enough that the Constitution is for the 100 percent."

"If you're in the business of defending civil liberties, you can't do it with partisan blinders," she added....." (Read more? Click title)

"Unapologetically pursuing and tracking patterns within the news others make since 2010."

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