{"id":2633994,"date":"2026-07-23T07:49:01","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T11:49:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/congress-spotlights-american-bar-associations-dance-with-the-dei-devil\/"},"modified":"2026-07-23T07:52:43","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T11:52:43","slug":"congress-spotlights-american-bar-associations-dance-with-the-dei-devil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/congress-spotlights-american-bar-associations-dance-with-the-dei-devil\/","title":{"rendered":"Congress Spotlights American Bar Association&#8217;s DEI Obsession"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">14<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcongress-spotlights-american-bar-associations-dance-with-the-dei-devil%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2633994&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses a recent House Oversight Committee hearing where ABA president Michelle Behnke defended the american Bar Association\u2019s nonpartisan stance, despite evidence to the contrary.The ABA, a powerful association influencing legal education, judicial appointments, and legal standards, has been accused of promoting left-wing policies, including support for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), and progressive issues on criminal justice, immigration, abortion, LGBT rights, and gun control. Republican members, notably Chairman Brandon Gill and Representatives Jim Jordan and Michael Cloud, challenged Behnke\u2019s claims, highlighting the ABA\u2019s advocacy of controversial policies like implicit bias training, abortion support, opposition to immigration detention, and alleged favoritism towards liberal outcomes in Supreme Court cases. Democrats on the committee dismissed the concerns as time-wasting. The hearing also featured witnesses criticizing the ABA\u2019s ideological bias and it&#8217;s impact on the legal system. the event underscored ongoing debates over the ABA\u2019s influence and partisan leanings within the legal community.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/american-bar-association\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">American Bar Association (ABA)<\/a> is \u201ca nonpartisan membership organization open to all American lawyers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That is the laughable <a href=\"https:\/\/oversight.house.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Behnke-Written-Testimony.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">claim<\/a> ABA President Michelle Behnke tried to sell during a Wednesday <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=AhAPZKA6IEk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">hearing<\/a> before the House Oversight Committee\u2019s Task Force on Defending Constitutional Rights and Exposing Institutional Abuses. And judging by their remarks, it\u2019s one the body\u2019s Republican members clearly weren\u2019t buying. <\/p>\n<p>For context, the American Bar Association is an organization that wields immense power and influence throughout the country\u2019s legal system. Not only does it play a big role in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/groups\/legal_education\/resources\/law-students\/what-accreditation-means-for-law-students\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">law school accreditation<\/a> and judicial nominations, but it also establishes standards for legal conduct throughout the profession and files briefs in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-shares-update-on-john-durham-probe-spending\/\" title=\"DOJ Shares Update On John Durham Probe Spending\">high-profile court cases<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Despite regularly professing to be \u201cnonpartisan,\u201d however, the ABA has repeatedly shown itself to be a left-wing advocacy organization. As <a href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/american-bar-association-aba\/#role-in-judicial-nominations\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">noted<\/a> by the Capital Research Center, the group \u201chas supported and lobbied for a broad left-of-center agenda on issues including criminal justice policy, immigration, abortion, LGBT issues, and gun control.\u201d It\u2019s also embraced <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/dei\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">DEI ideology<\/a> and \u201chas adopted lobbying priorities including legal status for nearly all illegal immigrants living in the United States, the repeal of mandatory-minimum sentencing laws, taxpayer-funded abortions for low-income Americans, and the implementation of affirmative action programs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Many of these left-wing positions took center stage during Wednesday\u2019s House hearing. <\/p>\n<p>Throughout his opening statement, Task Force Chairman Brandon Gill, R-Texas, underscored how the ABA \u201chas continuously pursued discriminatory DEI practices.\u201d These policies, he said, \u201cseek to pit Americans against one another on account of their immutable characteristics, and, at their core, fundamentally reject the American ideal of equal justice and of achieving success based on one\u2019s merit.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Texas congressman went on to <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/realBrandonGill\/status\/2080027481608716573?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">repeatedly<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/realBrandonGill\/status\/2080020765009674650?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">press<\/a> Behnke \u2014 who reaffirmed her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/news\/abanews\/aba-news-archives\/2025\/08\/annual-meeting-house-of-delegates-leadership\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">support<\/a> for DEI in the legal profession \u2014 on the ABA\u2019s leftist views on \u201cdiversity\u201d and \u201cinclusion.\u201d This included <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RepBrandonGill\/status\/2080021547918471409?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">asking<\/a> the ABA president about the organization\u2019s apparent obsession with \u201cimplicit bias.\u201d As The Federalist previously <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/11\/08\/exclusive-goodwill-is-pushing-critical-race-theory-through-staff-training\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">observed<\/a>, \u201cImplicit bias training is a common component of <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/critical-race-theory\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">critical race theory<\/a> and has been proven to be scientifically inaccurate to the point that some of the researchers who developed implicit bias tests <a href=\"https:\/\/newdiscourses.com\/tftw-implicit-bias\/\">have now repudiated them<\/a> as wildly inaccurate and unreliable.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><span><\/p>\n<blockquote data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<div lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<p>I spent two minutes asking the American Bar Association&#8217;s President if race should be considered in law school admissions decisions.<\/p>\n<p>She refused to give a definitive answer. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/hUDZKao3p3\">pic.twitter.com\/hUDZKao3p3<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u2014 Brandon Gill (@realBrandonGill) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/realBrandonGill\/status\/2080024477111287855?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 22, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/span> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>[READ:[READ:<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/06\/13\/the-american-bar-association-is-unfit-to-accredit-law-schools-and-the-trump-admin-can-stop-them\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The American Bar Association Is Unfit To Accredit Law Schools, And The Trump Admin Can Stop Them<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The ABA\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tim-walz-education-record-shows-teachers-union-capitulation-and-left-wing-priorities-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Tim Walz education record shows teachers union capitulation and left-wing priorities - Washington Examiner\">left-wing policy preferences<\/a> also appeared to be top of mind for House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Michael Cloud, R-Texas.<\/p>\n<p>In challenging Behnke\u2019s assertion that the ABA is \u201cnonpartisan,\u201d Jordan observed how the group has espoused support for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/news\/abanews\/aba-news-archives\/2022\/08\/aba-reaffirms-support-reproductive-rights\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">abortion<\/a>. He also noted how the ABA has voiced opposition to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americanbar.org\/advocacy\/governmental_legislative_work\/priorities_policy\/immigration\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">detention<\/a> of \u201cindividuals in immigration proceedings except in extraordinary circumstances\u201d and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.abajournal.com\/news\/article\/resolution-609-aba-opposes-laws-that-ban-transgender-student-athletes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">policies<\/a> that keep trans-identifying men out of women\u2019s sports.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Cloud highlighted recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/watchdog-warns-legal-powerhouse-has-made-far-left-advocacy-dominant-focus-last-decade\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reporting<\/a> indicating that more than 80 percent of the amicus briefs filed by the ABA in Supreme Court cases over the past decade \u201cfavored a liberal or progressive outcome.\u201d He further contrasted the ABA\u2019s apparent lack of concern with the left\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/07\/02\/scotus-pasting-birth-tourism-into-the-constitution-demands-a-legal-system-rebuild\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">efforts to disbar<\/a> President Trump\u2019s former lawyers and the absence of similar treatment for left-wing lawyers who advanced \u201cnew and novel legal parameters to creation a prosecution case against him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Unsurprisingly, the task force\u2019s Democrat members ran interference for racist DEI policies in the American legal system and characterized the hearing as a \u201cwast[e]\u201d of time.<\/p>\n<p>Other <a href=\"https:\/\/oversight.house.gov\/hearing\/the-future-of-dei-in-law-school-accreditation-and-the-legal-profession\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">witnesses<\/a> at Wednesday\u2019s hearing included Zach Smith, a senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation\u2019s Legal Policy Center, and David Blackman, a former law student and former member of the Texas State Guard. <\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ABA claims nonpartisan, but evidence suggests bias<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2633995,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ABA.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[51848,4402,16574],"class_list":["post-2633994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-american-bar-association","tag-congress","tag-dei"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ABA.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2633994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2633994"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2633994\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2633998,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2633994\/revisions\/2633998"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2633995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2633994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2633994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2633994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}