Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and other Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats in calling for Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to schedule a hearing to collect testimony from Mr. Erez Reuveni, former Acting Deputy Director for the Office of Immigration Litigation at the Department of Justice, who disclosed allegations of misconduct and documentation regarding judicial nominee Emil Bove.
In a letter to Grassley, the Senators wrote: “We respectfully request that you call Erez Reuveni to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee prior to the Committee’s vote on the nomination of Emil J. Bove III to be a U.S. Circuit Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Mr. Reuveni has made credible allegations against Mr. Bove, which, if true, clearly disqualify him for a lifetime appointment to the federal bench. Thus, it is imperative that the Committee hear from Mr. Reuveni, under oath, before we vote on Mr. Bove’s nomination.”
The Senators then cited Mr. Reuveni’s document production related to J.G.G. v. Trump, Abrego Garcia v. Noem, and D.V.D. v. DHS, writing: “Documentation provided by Mr. Reuveni demonstrates that he unsuccessfully attempted to secure government compliance with court orders in three separate cases being overseen by Mr. Bove in his role as Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General.”
The Senators concluded by highlighting the importance of understanding Mr. Bove’s role in these concerning episodes before voting on his judicial nomination and requested testimony, writing: “Mr. Bove repeatedly gestured at but never invoked deliberative process privilege at his hearing and in answers to written questions, undermining our ability to assess whether Mr. Bove engaged in the alleged misconduct and continuing executive branch officials’ use of ‘non-assertion’ assertions of privilege to defy congressional inquiries. Calling Mr. Reuveni to testify under oath will allow members of this Committee to appraise the veracity of his claims while defending the Committee’s prerogative to assess Mr. Bove’s qualifications…It is critical that this Committee understands the full scope of Mr. Bove’s actions at the Justice Department prior to voting on his nomination to a lifetime appointment on the federal bench. Given that Mr. Reuveni is willing to testify regarding this matter, we urge you to invite him before the Committee before proceeding to a vote on Mr. Bove’s nomination.”
In addition to Schiff, Padilla, and Durbin, the letter is signed by U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawai’i), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), and Peter Welch (D-Vt.).
For a PDF of the letter, click here.
Background:
During the Senate Judiciary Committee’s judicial nomination hearing, Schiff pressed Bove on whether he suggested that Department of Justice attorneys should ignore court orders and questioned Bove about his role in the dismissal of the corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Prior to Bove’s nomination hearing, Schiff joined Democratic Senate Judiciary Committee colleagues in demanding relevant personnel records.
After a whistleblower report from a former high-ranking DOJ official alleged that Bove encouraged government lawyers to ignore court orders, Schiff and other Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats pushed for further investigation of Bove’s conduct in light of released text messages, email exchanges, and documents further supporting the whistleblower claims.
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