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Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Senate panel advances Emil Bove's judicial nomination as Democrats object
Washington — The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday advanced the nomination of Emil Bove, President Trump's former defense lawyer and a top Justice Department official, to serve as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit. The GOP-led panel voted 12-0 to favorably report Bove's nomination to the full Senate, surmounting a key hurdle amid staunch opposition from a host of former federal prosecutors and judges, as well as allegations of unethical conduct by a Justice Department whistleblower. But as Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley called Bove's nomination for the vote, Democrats erupted in protest because not all were allowed to speak. Grassley also refused to consider a motion by Sen. Cory Booker, a New Jersey Democrat, to delay consideration of Bove's nomination and allow the whistleblower, Erez Reuveni, to testify before senators. All Democratic members of the committee then left the meeting. Grassley and Republicans continued to tick through nominations, including Bove's, while Booker criticized his GOP colleagues before joining his fellow Democrats in walking out. "This lacks decency. It lacks decorum. It shows that you do not simply want to hear from your colleagues. It is absolutely wrong," Booker said, accusing Republicans of trying to rush Bove's nomination through the committee. At the start of the hearing, Grassley accused his Democratic colleagues of "unfair rhetoric and treatment" of Bove. "Mr. Bove has a strong legal background and has served his country honorably. He deserves fair treatment," Grassley said. "The vicious partisan attacks and obstruction of nominees that we've seen from Democrats this Congress has to stop. One day, roles will reverse again, and my colleagues will want the same fairness for nominees of their president that they refuse to extend to President Trump's nominees." But Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the panel, said Bove shouldn't be seriously considered by the upper chamber for a lifetime appointment to the federal bench. "He led this administration's embarrassing efforts to strike a corrupt bargain with New York City Mayor Eric Adams and he's been trailed by a history of complaints long predating his affiliation with President Trump about his temperament, poor judgment and lack of candor before the court," Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, said. Bove's path to winning approval from the Judiciary Committee became easier earlier this week, when Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina told reporters that he was inclined to back his nomination. But it's less clear whether he will be confirmed by the full Senate. Republicans hold 53 seats in the upper chamber, meaning the nomination would fail if Bove loses the support of four GOP senators. Mr. Trump announced in May that he had selected Bove to fill a vacancy on the Philadelphia-based 3rd Circuit, which covers Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Bove was part of the legal team that represented the president in his criminal cases, including the New York hush-money trial and the two federal cases brought by former special counsel Jack Smith. After Mr. Trump won a second term, he selected Bove to serve as principal associate deputy attorney general. Bove also worked as the acting deputy attorney general while Todd Blanche, the current deputy, awaited confirmation by the Senate. Bove has been embroiled in controversy since joining the Justice Department. He was accused of pushing a quid pro quo in which the Justice Department would drop its prosecution of New York City Mayor Eric Adams in exchange for commitments on immigration. Several prosecutors resigned in the wake of the move regarding Adams' case. Bove defended the decision to drop the charges against Adams, telling senators in a questionnaire to the Judiciary Committee that it was "well within the scope of prosecutorial discretion." He also argued that Adams' submissions to the court "refute false public allegations by third parties regarding some sort of improper quid pro quo." Earlier this month, Reuveni, a former Justice Department attorney who handled immigration cases, filed a whistleblower claim with the Senate that accused Bove of suggesting that the administration ignore court orders. Reuveni worked for more than a decade at the Justice Department and was most recently the acting deputy director of its Office of Immigration Litigation. He was fired in April after he told a federal judge that the administration's deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to El Salvador had been an administrative error. A top immigration official with the administration had acknowledged in a March court filing that Abrego Garcia's removal was an "error" and an "oversight." Reuveni wrote in his report that during one meeting about Mr. Trump's proclamation invoking the wartime Alien Enemies Act, Bove said that the Justice Department would need to consider telling the courts "f**k you" if a judicial order blocked removals under the law. Emails and text messages shared with the Senate by the whistleblower include exchanges between Reuveni and a colleague at the Justice Department in which they appear to be referring to Bove's alleged directive regarding court orders. But Grassley said the documents were not enough to delay the vote on Bove's nomination, and he accused Democrats of mischaracterizing them. "Government lawyers aggressively litigating and interpreting court orders isn't misconduct. It's what lawyers do all the time," the Iowa Republican said. But Durbin said senators could have questioned Reuveni about his claims themselves, since he volunteered to appear before the Judiciary panel. "If you question the veracity of Mr. Reuveni, he's ready to stand before you, raise his right hand, take an oath and testify under oath. What more can you ask about credibility than that?" he said. Booker attempted to have the committee vote on a motion to delay the vote on Bove's nomination and allow Reuveni to testify before senators, but Grassley said the proposal wasn't on the agenda. "There's no need to rush this. What are you afraid of?" Booker said. The Justice Department has defended Bove and sought to paint Reuveni as a "disgruntled former employee." Blanche said the claims about Bove and other top Justice Department officials are "utterly false." White House spokesman Harrison Fields has also praised Bove as an "incredibly talented legal mind and a staunch defender of the U.S. Constitution who will make an excellent circuit court judge." During his confirmation hearing before the Judiciary Committee in June, Bove denied Reuveni's allegations that he urged department attorneys to violate a court order. Son of man who was violently detained by ICE reacts after release 7.3 magnitude earthquake hits southern Alaska Wall Street Journal reports Trump sent "bawdy" birthday letter to Epstein, Trump threatens to sue
Washington Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
As Democrats walk out, Republicans advance judicial nomination of Emil Bove
The Senate Judiciary Committee voted Thursday morning to advance President Donald Trump's controversial judicial nominee Emil Bove amid objections from Democratic senators, who walked out of the hearing in protest before the vote. Bove, a top Justice Department official nominated to serve on U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit, must now be approved by the full Senate.
CNN
2 days ago
- Politics
- CNN
Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans advance nomination of former Trump lawyer Emil Bove as Democrats walk out
Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans voted on Thursday to advance the nomination of Emil Bove, President Donald Trump's former personal attorney, to a federal judgeship, over the loud protests of Democrats. The vote — in which all 12 Republican committee members voted to affirm Bove's nomination — occurred as Sen. Cory Booker railed against committee chair Chuck Grassley and as every Democratic senator walked out. If he is ultimately confirmed by the Senate, Bove, a senior Justice Department official, will hold a lifetime appointment to the bench for the 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals. This story is breaking and will be updated.
CNN
2 days ago
- Politics
- CNN
Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans advance nomination of former Trump lawyer Emil Bove as Democrats walk out
Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans voted on Thursday to advance the nomination of Emil Bove, President Donald Trump's former personal attorney, to a federal judgeship, over the loud protests of Democrats. The vote — in which all 12 Republican committee members voted to affirm Bove's nomination — occurred as Sen. Cory Booker railed against committee chair Chuck Grassley and as every Democratic senator walked out. If he is ultimately confirmed by the Senate, Bove, a senior Justice Department official, will hold a lifetime appointment to the bench for the 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals. This story is breaking and will be updated.
CBS News
4 days ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Former Justice Department prosecutors seek to derail Emil Bove's federal judge nomination, memos say
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.
