In a move stirring debate, Donald Trump has nominated Emil Bove, his own former defense attorney from the hush money trial, to a lifetime seat on the influential 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals based in Philadelphia.
Bove, who played a key role defending Trump during his 2024 criminal conviction tied to hush money payments, is currently a top Justice Department official. Trump praised him as a warrior against what he calls the “Weaponization of Justice” and pledged Bove will “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN” from the federal bench.
The nomination, which must clear a Senate controlled by Trump’s party, adds to the president’s growing roster of judicial picks—already numbering 11 this term—and furthers his imprint on the federal judiciary following a record-shattering 234 appointments in his first term.
Bove’s legal career is marked by controversy: after serving as acting deputy attorney general early this year, he ignited uproar by ordering prosecutors to drop a corruption case against New York’s mayor, Eric Adams. When they resisted, Bove took the unusual step of personally arguing for dismissal, a maneuver that led to a judge dismissing the charges but also accusing the Justice Department of seeking a “bargain” tied to political interests. The fallout included mass resignations from Justice Department prosecutors.
His critics see Bove as emblematic of Trump’s efforts to politicize the Justice Department and erode its independence, with ethics complaints filed against him though no formal investigation followed.
Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats voiced strong reservations about Bove’s fitness for the role, citing alleged abuses of power. Yet the vacancy he is set to fill was created after Biden’s nominee for the seat was blocked, ensuring the battle over this appointment will be closely watched.
From prosecuting terrorism and drug cases to defending a divisive former president, Emil Bove’s path to the appellate court is anything but conventional — and the legal world is bracing for the impact of this nomination on the judiciary’s balance of power.
