Democrats challenge whether Emil Bove's controversial judicial nomination advanced after they walked out of vote

Source: NBC News

Democrats challenge whether Emil Bove's controversial judicial nomination advanced after they walked out of vote

Republicans say the nominations of former Trump lawyer Bove and former Fox News host Jeanine Pirro were sent to the full Senate. Democrats say that's in question.

July 17, 2025, 12:58 PM EDT
By Frank Thorp V and Dareh Gregorian

Democrats walked out of a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting Thursday to advance senior Justice Department official Emil Bove's nomination for a federal judgeship, alleging Republicans improperly rushed the process. ... A spokesperson for the top Democrat on the panel, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, said that as a result, it is an open question whether the nominations of Bove, who previously was President Donald Trump's personal defense lawyer, and former Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, whom the president has picked for U.S. attorney of the District of Columbia, are moving forward.

The spokesperson said the Republican majority broke several rules with its actions, and that Democrats would make their case to the Senate parliamentarian that the votes should be voided. ... A spokesperson for the committee's Republican chairman, Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, said there is no dispute, and both Bove's nomination to the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and Pirro's nomination can move ahead to the full Senate.

The fireworks started after Grassley announced he was holding the vote on Bove's nomination even though some Democratic members of the panel had yet to speak about the nominee. ... "This is out of order," said Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., told Grassley, as his colleagues walked out. "This is absolutely insane. What is the rush?"

"If you want to force this through, if you want to ram this through, there's a way to do this in accordance with the rules," Booker said. ... "This lacks decency. It lacks decorum. It shows you do not want to simply hear from your colleagues. This is absolutely wrong," Booker continued, and "you don't even seem to care." ... "This is an abuse of power," he added, and walked out himself after he was done with his objection.

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Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/democrats-challenge-whether-emil-boves-controversial-judicial-nominati-rcna219346