Sen. Thom Tillis said he will likely vote to advance the nomination of Emil Bove, President Donald Trump’s former criminal defense attorney and controversial pick for a judgeship on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, in the Senate Judiciary Committee next week.
“I’m probably going to go with the staff recommendation,” the North Carolina Republican told reporters Wednesday afternoon, adding that staff suggested he vote “yes.”
Tillis, who recently announced he would not seek reelection next year, has emerged as a swing vote on the panel: His pledge to vote in committee against Trump’s former nominee for U.S. attorney in District of Columbia, Ed Martin, helped tank the nomination entirely. His openness now to vote in favor of Bove, however, is a strong signal that any challenges this nominee may face on the Senate floor won’t originate on the Judiciary Committee, which is otherwise stacked with staunch Trump loyalists.
Bove, who is currently serving as principal associate deputy attorney general, was alleged by a former Justice Department staffer to have endorsed defying court orders to carry out Trump’s deportation agenda.
His role in DOJ efforts to dismiss corruption charges against New York City mayor Eric Adams, and to fire department staffers who worked on cases tied to the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, have also made his confirmation a flashpoint fight for Democrats, who argue he is unfit for the powerful federal appeals court bench.
