WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, grilled Emil Bove III, President Trump’s pick to serve on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, on multiple allegations of ethical misconduct throughout Mr. Bove’s tenure as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY). Senator Welch also called out Mr. Bove’s refusal to acknowledge that President Biden won the 2020 Presidential Election.   

Senator Welch: “This question of temperament obviously is relevant. You’d acknowledge that?” 

Mr. Bove: “Yes, Senator.”   

Senator Welch: “I was a defense attorney, worked with many prosecutors, had enormous respect for those prosecutors. So, the temperament issue doesn’t always get into the question of whether it’s an ethical violation. But it does get into the temperament and why that—in my view—is very important whatever our job is, but particularly for a judge where you’ve got that incredible power.” 

Watch Senator Welch’s full remarks below: 

Similar to other Trump nominees, Mr. Bove refused to acknowledge that President Biden had won the 2020 presidential election: 

Senator Welch: “Who won the 2020 election for President of the United States?” 

Mr. Bove: “President Biden was certified as the winner of that election.”   

Senator Welch: “So, you give the standard answer. You can’t say that he won because he got the majority of votes and also got the electoral college victory?”   

Mr. Bove: “I think that the characterizations that you just made, Senator, are both political. And so, I can’t address them under the canons, and they’re also tied up in ongoing litigation.”   

Senator Welch: “Help me understand how it’s political to state who got the most votes in any election.”   

Mr. Bove: [PAUSE] “…Senator, I’m just trying to be precise. The process by which our country declares the victor in an election is a certification process. President Biden was certified.” 

Ahead of Mr. Bove’s nomination hearing today, Senator Welch joined six Senate Judiciary Committee colleagues in requesting personnel records relevant to Mr. Bove’s conduct throughout his career in the Southern District of New York. Last month, Senator Welch and Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) led their colleagues in referring Mr. Bove to the Office of the Inspector General and called for an investigation into Mr. Bove’s potential abuse of prosecutorial authority within the Civil Rights Division.   

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