Senate Judiciary Republicans Advance Emil Bove’s Nomination

Senate Judiciary Republicans advanced a slate of judicial nominees, including Emil Bove, on their own Thursday morning as Democrats walked out of the committee hearing.

The vote took place after repeated attempts by Sen. Cory Booker to continue debate, resulting in Democrats leaving the committee room as voting began.

“What are you afraid of? … What is the fear here?” Booker said as Sen. Chuck Grassley, the chair of the committee, proceeded with the votes.

Bove, a top Department of Justice official, was nominated for a lifetime appointment as a federal judge. Jeanine Pirro, a Fox News host and Trump ally, advanced in her nomination as a federal prosecutor.

Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, who voted “yes” on both nominees, was the only Republican lawmaker seen as a possible “no” vote. Tillis on Thursday said he would not approve any nominee in support of violence against Capitol Police officers. But he said that with regard to Bove, he “cannot find one piece of evidence where he said that the violence acts against police officers were OK or condoned.”

“Do your homework on finding me a hard example and count me in in refusing to confirm that nominee, but don’t finesse it when you simply don’t have the facts on your side,” Tillis said.

Bove, who once investigated Jan. 6 cases, came to lead an effort at the DOJ to identify all the FBI employees who worked on cases related to the insurrection, NBC News reported. He was also reportedly behind the decision to fire federal prosecutors who worked on insurrection cases.

In response to the committee’s questions earlier in his confirmation process, reported by Mother Jones, Bove dodged many questions on Jan. 6 — the outlet reported that he responded, “The characterization of the events on January 6 is a matter of significant political debate” when asked by a Democratic senator whether he denounced the riot.

During Bove’s nomination process, a whistleblower came forward to allege that Bove told the department it would need to consider ignoring court orders that would halt deportation flights to El Salvador’s megaprison.

On Wednesday, a group of more than 900 DOJ attorneys sent a letter to the committee urging them to reject Bove’s nomination, calling him a “leader in this assault” on the Justice Department.

After advancing through committee on Thursday, his nomination will head to the floor for a full vote.

“This is a kangaroo court, that’s all we have here, ladies and gentlemen,” Sen. Mazie Hirono said before leaving the hearing.

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Editor’s Note: This story was updated with additional reporting.