How the 'once-stodgy' ABA is sounding a 'call to arms' for 'the rule of law': ex-federal prosecutor

During the United States' 2020 presidential election, a long list of right-wing conservatives — from Cindy McCain to former Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Arizona) to former Ohio Gov. John Kasich — endorsed now-President Joe Biden. Four years later, the Republicans for Harris group includes former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Illinois), former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, former Trump White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham and other outspoken critics of GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Another major Trump critic on the right is retired Judge J. Michael Luttig, a prominent figure in conservative legal circles. Luttig is now heading the American Bar Association's bipartisan Task Force on Democracy.

In an article published by the conservative website The Bulwark on August 8, former federal prosecutor Dennis Aftergut lays out some reasons why the task force's formation is an important development.

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"If you look at a handful of seemingly disparate events across the country from the last few weeks," Aftergut explains, "you will see something promising for our future: defenders of the rule of law working against Trumpist attempts to erode it. First up, a story from the American Bar Association, that once-stodgy mainstay of the lawyering profession. On August 2, the ABA's bipartisan Task Force on Democracy sounded a call to arms to lawyers to get active defending the rule of law."

Aftergut notes that the Task Force on Democracy's other members range from liberal Jeff Rosen (who runs the National Constitution Center) to Fiorina, The Bulwark's Bill Kristol and other well-known conservatives.

According to Aftergut, the ABA task force is calling for "specific actions that lawyers and bar associations can take to stand up for democracy, from becoming poll workers to writing articles countering disinformation to hosting civic events."

"Donald Trump and his MAGA party are trying to destroy the rule of law in our society," Aftergut stresses. "Prosecutors like those in Arizona and organizations like the ABA have stepped forward to defend it."

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Dennis Aftergut's full article for The Bulwark is available at this link.