Trump judicial pick blows off Democrats’ questions on Ukraine

An appeals court nominee has ignored a request from Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, but still advances

An appeals court nominee has ignored a request from Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee to say whether he played a role in White House events now at the heart of the accelerating House impeachment probe — and Republicans haven’t let that halt his move through the confirmation process.

The committee voted 12-10 along party lines Thursday to advance the nomination of Steven Menashi, who works in the White House counsel’s office. President Donald Trump picked him for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit based in New York.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., filed cloture on the nomination Thursday afternoon. That move lines up a vote on Menashi early next week, just as the House holds its first public impeachment hearings focused on the events surrounding Trump’s controversial July 25 call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

View the complete November 7 article by Todd Ruger on The Roll Call website here.

When Loyalty is the Most Important Qualification

The following article was posted on the TrumpAccountable.org website December 20, 2017:

Matthew Peterson, President Trump’s nominee to be a Federal District Judge, spectacularly flubbed a confirmation hearing last week. Under relatively benign questioning from Senator John Kennedy (R-LA), Peterson was unable to answer even the most basic questions about legal procedure and the operation of the courts.

Peterson, who was nominated several months ago, had time to prepare and could have reviewed the content that likely would have been addressed during the Judiciary Committee hearing. In addition to never having presided over a federal, state, or civil trial, Peterson had no idea what “motion in limine” or the “Daubert standard” was or how they related to the position for which he was nominated. Continue reading “When Loyalty is the Most Important Qualification”