Trump nominates his criminal defense attorney Emil Bove to federal appeals court
President Donald Trump nominated Emil Bove, one of his former criminal defense attorneys, to serve as a federal appeals court judge.
"Emil is SMART, TOUGH, and respected by everyone," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. "He will end the Weaponization of Justice, restore the Rule of Law, and do anything else that is necessary to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN."
Bove is currently principal associate deputy attorney general, a position to which he was appointed by Trump. With Bove as the number three official, the Justice Department has taken controversial steps to execute Trump's priorities for the agency, including purging staff.
Bove issued a memo directing prosecutors to investigate state or local officials who hinder President Donald Trump's crackdown on immigration. He also ordered prosecutors for the Southern District of New York to drop bribery charges against New York Mayor Eric Adams. Acting U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon resigned rather than carry out the order, and other DOJ officials also quit.
Trump appointed at least four of his former attorneys to high-level government positions, including Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and was a former prosecutor in New York.
If confirmed to the post in the Third Circuit based in Philadelphia, he would have lifetime tenure.
Bove represented Trump in his federal criminal trial in which Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to hide a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
Trump's move to install a close ally on the federal bench comes as he and his allies have intensely attacked federal judges for issuing rulings blocking some of his unprecedented and aggressive uses of executive power.
Trump also announced on May 28 that he is nominating Kyle Dudek, Anne-Leigh Gaylord Moe, John Guard and Jordan E. Pratt as judges in Florida's Middle District, and Ed Artau as a judge in Florida's Southern District.
"The role of a Judge has NEVER BEEN MORE IMPORTANT," Trump wrote in nominating Guard.