Senate Judiciary Democrats are pushing the panel’s Republicans to swiftly call a hearing with a Justice Department whistleblower who has accused President Trump’s judicial nominee Emil Bove of suggesting the DOJ defy court orders.
Erez Reuveni, who was fired by the Justice Department shortly after he told a judge that detained migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia was deported in error, was present in a meeting in which he alleged Bove said the DOJ may need to tell the courts “f— you” if judges sought to block deportations to a notorious Salvadoran prison.
Bove, a senior official in the deputy attorney general’s office, has since been nominated by Trump for a lifetime appointment to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.
“Mr. Reuveni has made credible allegations against Mr. Bove, which, if true, clearly disqualify him for a lifetime appointment to the federal bench. Thus, it is imperative that the Committee hear from Mr. Reuveni, under oath, before we vote on Mr. Bove’s nomination,” Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.), the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, wrote alongside other members.
“Calling Mr. Reuveni to testify under oath will allow members of this Committee to appraise the veracity of his claims while defending the Committee’s prerogative to assess Mr. Bove’s qualifications.”
The panel will weigh Bove’s nomination on Thursday.
Last week the committee released substantial documentation from Reuveni showing other DOJ employees present for the March 14 meeting referencing the...
By Daniel Dale, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump made some false claims to the press while meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House on Monday, including a long-debu...