Carrie Campbell Severino

• Comment: This draft, as written, does not appear to indicate that one of the biographical notability criteria is satisfied. If one of the criteria is satisfied, please revise this draft appropriately, with a reliable source, if necessary stating on the talk page or in AFC comments which criterion is met, and resubmit. It is the responsibility of the submitter to show that a subject satisfies a notability criterion.
  You may ask for advice about the biographical notability criteria at the Teahouse.
  In particular, see and refer to WP:GNG for notability, which is the guideline that the subject should be evaluated against.
  This draft appears to have been written in the past and not revised recently. It describes Severino in the present tense as a supporter of the Barrett nomination. That nomination was approved and is in the past, like the Kavanaugh nomination. This draft refers to Merrick Garland as a judge of the United States Court of Appeals. He is Attorney General of the United States. This draft needs review. Robert McClenon (talk) 07:30, 3 January 2022 (UTC)

• Comment: Likely undisclosed WP:COI per editing history and possible WP:SPI issue. Please consider this issue further while reviewing for WP:NPOV. Snowycats (talk) 02:28, 27 October 2020 (UTC)

---

Carrie Campbell Severino is an American lawyer and conservative political activist. She is the current President of the Judicial Crisis Network (also known as the JCN, and, since December 2019, legally known as the Concord Fund). Severino is a close associate of Leonard Leo.

Severino was a law clerk to United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. She is a leading figure in the campaign to support the Supreme Court nominations of Amy Coney Barrett and was also a prominent supporter of Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination.

Education

In 1999, Severino graduated from Duke University with a B.A. in Biology. In 2001 she received a Masters in Linguistics from Michigan State University and in 2004 she received a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Career

She was a law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and to Judge David B. Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Severino was also a law clerk at The Beckett Fund for Religious Liberty, the legal fund that represented Hobby Lobby in the landmark Burwell v. Hobby Lobby suit, from 2005-2006. Severino was the policy director of the Judicial Crisis Network before becoming its President. She is a writer for the National Review.

Severino is a member of the Federalist Society and is a frequent speaker at their events. She is also a regular contributor to the National Review, and appears regularly on Fox News.

Political advocacy regarding the judiciary

As the president of the Judicial Crisis Network, Severino has been at the forefront of political battles involving four nominees to the United States Supreme Court.

Campaign against Merrick Garland

Severino has been described as the "leader of the opposition" to Barrack Obama's appointment of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court in 2016, following the death of Antonin Scalia. Severino personally appeared conservative talk shows and radio programs, targeting states with upcoming Senate races, such as New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The Judicial Crisis Network spent tens of thousands of dollars running advertisements in Washington D.C., Iowa, New Hampshire, West Virginia, North Dakota, Colorado and Indiana opposing Garland's nomination. In the first six weeks after Scalia's death, the Judicial Crisis Network spent more than $4.5 million to campaign against Garland's nomination; in total they spent more than $5 million on the campaign against Garland. Garland's nomination never received a vote from the Republican-held Senate, and he remains a justice on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Campaign for Neil Gorsuch

Severino and the Judicial Crisis Network made filling the seat to which Garland had been appointed a central issue in the 2016 Presidential election and several Senate races. In total, Severino and Judicial Crisis Network pledged to pend $10 million to campaign for Neil Gorsuch's appointment.

Campaign for Brett Kavanaugh

The Judicial Crisis Network spent $4.5 million in ad buys supportive of the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. In 2019, the watchdog group Campaign for Accountability accused the Judicial Crisis Network of sending illegal robotexts to Indiana residents about the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh. Severino appeared dozens of times on major TV news outlets to defend Kavanaugh from allegations of sexual assault by Christine Blasey Ford, saying on CNN that the allegation "covered a whole range of conduct, from boorishness to rough horseplay to actual attempted rape.” Severino appeared on major TV programs more than 100 times during the nomination campaign in support of Kavanaugh.

Campaign for Amy Coney Barrett

In September 2020, after the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Judicial Crisis Network launched a $2.2 million campaign to support President Trump's right to appoint a judge prior to the November 2020 presidential election. Once Trump announced that Amy Coney Barrett would be his nominee, Severino and the Judicial Crisis Network announced a $10 million campaign to support her nomination. Severino and Judicial Crisis Network are leading what Severino calls a "war room" of pro-Catholic and pro-business advocacy groups including the Susan B. Anthony List, Catholic Vote, America First Policies, the Club for Growth and Heritage Action in support of Coney Barrett's campaign.

Other campaigns concerning the Federal judiciary

In 2019, Severino successfully lobbied against the nomination of Halil Suleyman Ozerden to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Positions on policy issues

The Affordable Care Act

Severino criticized as "profoundly political" Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts' decision in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius not to strike down the Affordable Care Act.

LGBTQ Rights

Severino criticized the Supreme Court's decision in Bostock v. Clayton County; the decision ruled that the protections of the 1964 Civil Rights Act apply to LGBTQ individuals. She criticized the lead author of the decision, Neil Gorsuch, for writing the majority opinion “for the sake of appealing to college campuses and editorial boards.”

So-Called "Dark Money" Political Donations

After Senator Sheldon Whitehouse accused Severino and the Judicial Crisis Network of being implicated in a dark money judicial-influence network at a scale of hundreds of millions of dollars, Severino defended the practice of groups such as the JCN receiving funding from anonymous donors. Mrs. Severino insisted that the goal anonymity was not secrecy, but rather to protect her donors from “harassment” if their names were made public. Severino has repeatedly refused to discuss which individuals fund her work at the Judicial Crisis Network.

Other positions

Sexual misconduct allegations

Clarence Thomas

In 2016, Severino called a second sexual harassment claim made against, Justice Clarence Thomas, for whom she clerked, "outlandish."

Brett Kavanaugh

In September 2018, Severino asserted on CNN that Christine Blasey Ford's allegations against Brett Kavanaugh could "cover a whole range of conduct from boorishness to rough horseplay to actual attempted rape."

Joe Biden

Commenting on the sexual assault allegations made by Tara Reade against Joe Biden, Severino has asserted that "there is infinitely more corroboration of Reade’s account than there was of Ford’s."

Personal Life

Severino is married to Roger Severino, the current head of the Department of Health and Human Services’s Office for Civil Rights, and the former head of the DeVos Center for Religion and Civil Society at the Heritage Foundation. They have six children. Both Severinos are devout Catholics.