After Committee Republicans completely upended committee rules, ignored a point of order, and rushed through judicial nominees without proper vetting, Ranking Member Durbin led Committee Democrats in a walk out of the Committee meeting
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after Committee Democrats walked out of today’s Senate Judiciary Committee executive business meeting during votes on 10 nominees, including Emil Bove’s nomination to be a United States Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and Jeanine Pirro’s nomination to be United States Attorney for the District of Columbia:
“Today’s Committee executive business meeting included 10 nominees—among them Emil Bove, nominated for a lifetime appointment on the federal bench. Mr. Bove belongs nowhere near the federal bench. He led the Administration’s effort to strike a corrupt bargain with New York City Mayor Eric Adams and has 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.
“Additionally, Erez Reuveni, a career Justice Department attorney who defended the first Trump Administration’s immigration policies, filed a whistleblower complaint with my office regarding Mr. Bove. That complaint recounted that Mr. Bove suggested DOJ might need to say ‘f--- you’ to federal courts that issued orders that the Administration opposed. I asked Mr. Reuveni whether he could substantiate his claims, and in response, he provided text messages, email exchanges, and other documents corroborating his allegations.
“Given Mr. Reuveni’s credible allegations against Mr. Bove, which, if true, clearly disqualify him for a lifetime appointment to the federal bench, I called for the Committee to hear from Mr. Reuveni, under oath, before we voted on Mr. Bove’s nomination. But Chairman Grassley denied that request. And today, he cut off debate time on Mr. Bove’s nomination before turning to his vote, as well as nine other nominations, including Ms. Pirro’s.
“Chairman Grassley claimed that he was following Committee precedent. This is simply untrue. When I was Chair, I only limited debate when Republicans invoked Senate rules to shut down Committee meetings, and after Committee members were given ample opportunities to voice their concerns about nominees on the agenda. Today, Chairman Grassley blocked Democratic members from discussing the controversial records of nominees like Emil Bove and Jeanine Pirro, shut down debate, and forced votes for no apparent reason.
“My question is this: what are my Senate Republican colleagues trying to hide?”
Senate Republicans broke numerous Committee rules, including Committee Rule 3 regarding quorum (nine members of the Committee, including at least two members of the minority, shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting business), and Committee Rule 4 regarding ending debate (if there is objection to bring the matter to a vote without further debate, a roll call vote of the Committee shall be taken, and debate shall be terminated if the motion to bring the matter to a vote without further debate passes with eleven votes in the affirmative, one of which must be cast by the minority) during today’s executive business meeting.
-30-