"Even the Liberal ABA"

Republican senators, minus two, cowardly and corruptly confirmed Emil Bove, who is blatantly unfit for the federal court of appeals. We shall see if federal judges thinking about retirement will follow that mindset. I have limited hope in that respect. 

One defense of Emil Bove is that "even the liberal American Bar Association" deemed him "well qualified." It is a tad ironic that the ABA is used this way when the Trump Administration limited its role in vetting nominees. 

The ranking of nominees notes that a majority of the ABA Standing Committee ranked him as "well qualified." A minority said he was "qualified," noting "insufficient information." 

Fitness for judicial office is not merely a matter of paper legal qualifications and experience. It is how he has been acting that is concerning. Anyway, mere "qualifications" will not lead Trump to nominate liberal judicial candidates. That underlines the point. 

The  ABA supports various liberal policies on issues like abortion and has criticized Trump as threatening the rule of law. Conservatives label them as "liberal." It is officially nonpartisan. Which is de facto left and woke in the minds of some conservatives. 

Anyway, citing Bove a "well qualified" underlines the limitations of that ranking. There has to be an understanding of what that means, including for the specific position. He is not qualified. The ABA ranking is at best misleading.

I think the ABA having a role in ranking judicial nominees is fine. I would not deem their rankings an irrefutable presumption in either direction. In this case, it is being used as an often not in good faith (the people would otherwise have little respect for such rankings if it were a Democratic nominee) fashion. 

Anyway, unqualified. Plus, the confirmation process had been sloppy and rushed. More and more evidence is coming out about that. Whatever the ABA says.