Harry Litman - The Wrong Man for the Job
The most consequential court of appeals nomination in years comes before the Senate Judiciary Committee today.
Emil Bove, nominated for the Third Circuit, has shown himself a willing henchman for Donald Trump, even when that means betraying the Department of Justice’s most sacred charge: to do justice without fear or favor. If he is confirmed, it would reward his transgressions — and advance Trump’s project of populating the federal courts with judges who put loyalty to him above the dictates of the rule of law.
Bove first emerged in the public eye as Trump’s personal lawyer in the New York criminal case. After Trump’s inauguration, he vaulted into DOJ leadership, handpicked to serve as principal aide to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche — one of only a handful of Trump loyalists embedded at senior levels.
Early in his tenure, Bove directed DOJ prosecutors in the Southern District of New York to dismiss charges against Mayor Eric Adams — not because the evidence was lacking, but because the administration wanted Adams pliable. Bove’s own letter conceded the case against Adams was solid. The dismissal was purely political: let Adams off the hook in exchange for cooperation on immigration and other Trump priorities.
https://harrylitman.substack.com/p/the-wrong-man-for-the-job il