On Thursday morning, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to advance President Donald Trump’s controversial judicial nominee, Emil Bove. This decision came amidst significant objections from Democratic senators, who staged a protest walkout before the vote took place. Bove, currently a top official at the Justice Department, has been nominated to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit and will now require approval from the full Senate to secure his position.
Prior to the vote, Bove faced serious whistleblower allegations claiming that he suggested to his subordinates during a Justice Department meeting that they might need to defy a court order. This court order was seen as a potential hindrance to the president's aggressive deportation efforts. As the principal associate deputy attorney general, Bove has been at the center of some of the most controversial actions during the Trump administration, including the contentious decision to drop federal corruption charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams.
Both the Justice Department and Bove, who has also served as Trump’s personal defense attorney, have denied any wrongdoing related to these allegations. Senate Democrats had hoped that the whistleblower claims would derail Bove’s nomination. However, despite the serious nature of the allegations and supporting documentation, they have not significantly influenced their Republican colleagues.
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a known advocate for whistleblowers, has thus far declined to hold a hearing featuring the whistleblower. The whistleblower in question, former Justice Department prosecutor Erez Reuveni, was terminated after admitting at a court hearing that the administration mistakenly deported Maryland resident Kilmar Abrego García to El Salvador, despite a previous court order prohibiting his removal.
During the hearing on Thursday, Grassley remarked, “Even if we accept most of the claims as true, there’s no scandal here. Government lawyers aggressively litigating and interpreting court orders isn’t misconduct; it’s what lawyers do all the time.” This assertion did little to appease frustrated Democratic senators, including Sen. Cory Booker (D-New Jersey), who expressed dissatisfaction with Grassley’s refusal to allow further debate. All attending Democrats ultimately walked out in protest.
Despite Democratic hopes of swaying Senator Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) to vote against Bove’s lifetime appointment, all 12 Republican members of the committee voted to advance Bove. Tillis, who is not seeking reelection, had previously voted against Ed Martin for the position of D.C. U.S. attorney, prompting the White House to withdraw his nomination. He has publicly stated he would not support nominees who endorsed the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Notably, Bove played a role in the dismissal of Justice Department attorneys and staff who worked on the prosecutions related to the January 6 riots. Nevertheless, Tillis reaffirmed his support for Bove, declaring during the hearing that he would not back nominees who condoned the violence against law enforcement on January 6.
Leading up to the vote, over 900 former Justice Department attorneys signed a letter expressing alarm over Bove’s nomination. They accused him of disregarding constitutional principles and established Justice Department norms, particularly citing his push to drop the corruption case against Adams. The letter emphasized, “Mr. Bove’s trampling over institutional norms in this case, and in others, sent shockwaves through the ranks—cratering morale, triggering mass departures, and eroding the effectiveness of DOJ’s vital work.”
Furthermore, the letter warned that “prosecutorial authority carries profound consequences on individuals’ lives and the integrity of our public institutions; wielding it without impartiality is a flagrant abuse of that power.” The attorneys stressed that impartiality is a cornerstone of the judiciary, and any failure to maintain it at the DOJ must be critically evaluated.
In response to these allegations, Todd Blanche, the Justice Department’s deputy attorney general, defended Bove in an op-ed published on Fox News, claiming the allegations against him were part of a “smear campaign.” Blanche argued that internal disagreements within the Department do not render decisions unlawful or unethical. He praised Bove’s integrity, stating that Bove advocated for the dismissal of the prosecution against Adams, even when faced with opposition from colleagues in the Southern District of New York.
