A progressive advocacy group unearths a series of controversial writings of Rao.
The past, they say, catches up on you someday. And it seems nobody knows it better than White House official Neomi Rao right now. The Indian American, who serves as the administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, was nominated by President Trump to replace Brett Kavanaugh last November on the DC Court of Appeals. However, her nomination expired, along with many others, with the last Congress.
On Tuesday, Trump re-sent a list of 51 judicial nominees, including Neomi Rao. But currently, she is facing flak for some of her writings that appeared dating back as far as two decades ago. There were some speculations on whether she would be re-nominated considering the attention the past writings have been gaining recently.
The writings that have been under the scanner are from her days at Yale and also some of her articles that appeared in the Weekly Standard written back in 1994 and 1996. The Standard, which ceased published last year, published an article by Rao that criticized two African American scholars.
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Rao wrote: “Race may be a hot, money-making issue, but even … (one of the two men) seems to realize that it can be talked to death.”
Another article in Yale Herald expresses Rao’s conservative views on LGBT groups. She wrote in about a rift between LGBT groups: “Trendy political movements have only recently added sexuality to the standard checklist of traits requiring tolerance.”
Yet in another article in Yale Herald, Rao too a rather questionable stance where she wrote that, rather than men, it should be drunk women who should be prosecuted for rape.
She wrote: “A good way to avoid a potential date rape is to stay reasonably sober.” She added: “And if she drinks to the point where she can no longer choose, well, getting to that point was part of her choice.”
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Alliance for Justice (AFJ), a progressive advocacy group, recently compiled a list of such articles and distributed to news publications last week.
The Department of Justice has defended Rao.
Rao, born to Parsi physicians from India, was raised in Michigan. She graduated from Yale and attended the University of Chicago Law School. Rao has also worked in White House Counsel’s Office during President George W. Bushs’ second term. In 2017, President Trump nominated her to become the administrator of the Office of the Information and Regulatory Affairs.
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