Trump judicial nominee Bove clears Senate panel despite Democratic protest

By Andrew Goudsward

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A U.S. Senate panel on Thursday advanced the nomination of Donald Trump's former personal lawyer to be a federal appeals court judge over protests from Democrats, who accuse him of using aggressive tactics to enforce the U.S. president's agenda at the Justice Department.

Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously supported the nomination of Emil Bove for a lifetime appointment on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, sending the nomination to the full Senate. Bove currently serves as a top Justice Department official.

The hearing devolved into partisan rancor when the panel's Republican chairman, Chuck Grassley of Iowa, cut off debate on Bove's nomination. Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, a Democrat, shouted that Grassley was violating the committee's rules as Republicans cast their votes. The other Democrats walked out of the hearing.

"This is outrageous that you're not allowing senators to have their fair say," Booker told Grassley. "What are you afraid of?"

Grassley accused Booker of "obstruction."

Bove's nomination drew fierce opposition from Democrats and many former Justice Department employees, more than 900 of whom signed a letter accusing him of undermining the integrity of the department.

Bove's defenders have pointed to his background as a federal terrorism prosecutor in New York and his work countering drug cartels and other threats.

Trump named Bove to a senior post at the Justice Department after he helped defend Trump against three criminal cases brought against him during his years out of power.

Bove came under scrutiny over his role in firing career prosecutors who worked on cases arising from the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol and his order to drop a federal corruption case against New York Mayor Eric Adams.

A former Justice Department lawyer last month accused Bove of suggesting the government may defy court rulings against the Trump administration's deportation efforts.

Bove has said he cannot recall making the statement and denied being a Trump "enforcer."

(Reporting by Andrew Goudsward. Additional reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; editing by Andy Sullivan and Deepa Babington)

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