Former Justice Department prosecutors seek to derail Emil Bove's federal judge nomination, memos say

CBS News

2 days ago

A group of former Justice Department officials are making an eleventh-hour effort to derail President Trump's nomination of Emil Bove for a lifetime appointment to a federal judgeship, according to memos obtained by CBS News.
The effort includes outreach to sway the vote of Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican whose objection doomed the nomination of another Trump surrogate earlier this year. The Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to hold a vote on Bove's nomination for a seat on the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday.
Bove, a former personal defense attorney for Mr. Trump, has been a magnet for controversy this year as he has served as a top Justice Department administrator.
A group of eight former federal prosecutors have drafted a memo for senators arguing for the defeat of Bove's nomination. The group accuses Bove of being a "hatchet man" for Mr. Trump who would work as a loyalist for the president from the bench.
In the memo, the former prosecutors accuse Bove of executing mass firings inside the agency of people "perceived not to show sufficient loyalty to the Administration's policies." They also point to a whistleblower complaint accusing Bove and others of discussing whether to ignore court orders.
The group also argues Bove sought to execute a quid pro quo earlier this year, by forcing out Justice Department employees who refused to work to dismiss New York Mayor Eric Adams' "serious criminal corruption indictment in return for the mayor's commitment to cooperate with the Administration's immigration policy." Bove has denied that Adams' prosecution was dropped as part of a quid pro quo.
Dan Toomey, a former federal prosecutor in Washington, is helping to lead the effort and is among the signatories to the memo. Toomey is a former president of the D.C. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Association.
"We are exceedingly worried about whether or not this man is going to be a guy who is fair and impartial as a judge, or just a mouthpiece for the administration," he told CBS News.
Chuck Work, who served as a D.C. federal prosecutor in the 1970s, has also signed his name to the memo opposing Bove's confirmation. Work told CBS News, "Employees have had complaints about Bove's temperament. Temperament is really important for a judge. And this man does not have it."
The former prosecutors are asking Judiciary Committee leaders to delay any vote on Bove until the panel can hear testimony from a Justice Department whistleblower who has alleged Bove sought to defy court orders.
The whistleblower, Erez Reuveni, alleges he was "threatened, fired, and publicly disparaged" in his final weeks in the department after he questioned instructions from top Justice Department officials to ignore court orders and misrepresent facts in three separate, high-profile standoffs between the department and federal judges over immigration cases. Among those officials was Bove.
"To ensure that the committee is not accused of 'rubber stamping' this nomination, it has to hear from the whistleblower and review the contemporary and damning documentation he's provided," Toomey said.
The Justice Department defended Bove in response to Reuveni's allegations. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said his account contains "falsehoods purportedly made by a disgruntled former employee," and "at no time did anyone suggest a court order should not be followed."
Documents reviewed by CBS News showed the group has attempted to press Tillis to "come to the rescue of the rule of law and oppose the nomination of Emil Bove to the Third Circuit."
Tillis told CBS News on Tuesday that Bove "has the votes" to move through the Senate Judiciary Committee, after which the Senate would vote on his nomination. But Tillis said he is unsure if Bove has sufficient votes to pass in the Senate. Tillis did not mention any objections he had to Bove's nomination. Tillis has told reporters in the past he's likely to vote in favor of Bove.
Tillis — who is not running for reelection next year — has occasionally broken with Mr. Trump.
Earlier this year, Tillis objected to the nomination of Trump surrogate and former Jan. 6 defense lawyer Ed Martin for the top federal prosecutor position in Washington, D.C. Tillis has also criticized Trump surrogates who deny the violence against police in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Bove is accused of ordering the FBI to compile a list of more than 5,000 FBI employees who were part of the Jan. 6 probe, for a further internal review of the agents' actions in the cases.
"Tillis has said the January 6th insurrection happened and that the pardons that Trump issued 'sucked,'" Work said. "He went around and told that to police officers around Capitol Hill."
When asked for comment, the White House has championed Bove's nomination for the court.
"Emil Bove is an incredibly talented legal mind and a staunch defender of the U.S. Constitution who will make an excellent circuit court judge. Bove is unquestionably qualified for the role and has a career filled with accolades, both academically and throughout his legal career, that should make him a shoo-in for the Third Circuit," White House spokesman Harrison Fields told CBS News earlier this month.
"The President is committed to nominating constitutionalists to the bench who will restore law and order and end the weaponization of the justice system, and Emil Bove fits that mold perfectly," Fields said.