Democrats walk out of Bove, Pirro meeting as panel advances controversial Trump nominees
Bove, one of President Trump's former criminal defense attorneys who is now in the No. 3 spot in the Justice Department, has been nominated for a lifetime appointment as a jurist on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.
He has been accused by a whistleblower of saying the administration should consider telling the courts 'f— you' and defy any injunctions imposed by judges blocking their use of the Alien Enemies Act.
Pirro, a former county judge and Fox News host, was confirmed as a nominee for U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C.
The meeting made for an unusual scene, as Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) appealed to Sen. Chuck Grassley (Iowa) on personal terms after the GOP chairman cut off requests for continued debate and did not allow all Democrats to speak on the Bove nomination.
'You are a good man. You are a decent man, why are you doing this? What is Donald Trump saying to you that are making you do something which is violating the decorum of this committee, the rules of this committee, the decency and the respect that we have each other to at least hear each other out?' Booker said.
'This is unjust. This is wrong. It is the further deterioration of this committee's integrity with a person like this. What are you afraid of?'
Booker then left alongside the rest of his colleagues, a rare protest leaving the Democratic side of the dias completely empty.
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Chicago Tribune
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The Tribune's Quotes of the Week quiz for July 26
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The Hill
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The Hill
5 minutes ago
- The Hill
Polls turn sour on Trump as he hits new lows with independents
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He said he's not worried about this becoming a major issue for now, but the administration should release the documents to move on. 'Communications is a vital part of getting anything accomplished,' Carney said. 'They just got off on the wrong foot on this. They just need to fix what they can and move on.' Republican strategist Brady Smith argued that a benefit for Trump of not having to worry about reelection is he can move forward with policies that he believes are in the country's interest even if the poll numbers suggest they're not popular. 'One of the big takeaways here is with the president unable to seek another term in the White House, he doesn't have to play to the polls as much,' he said. 'He's able to put into practice what he campaigned on, and deportations and securing of the border was top of the list. Voters knew what they were voting for at the time.' 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He said Trump's 'magic' always has been 'keeping the ball moving' so the public's attention doesn't stick too much to any one issue, but he's having more difficulty moving on from these issues dragging him down in polling. 'He's been masterful at that throughout his public career, and now he's having significant problems turning the page,' Miringoff said.
