Biden refusing calls to withdraw controversial judicial nominee Adeel Mangi
When it comes to a particularly controversial judicial nominee currently awaiting completion of the confirmation process, the White House is showing no interest in changing course.
Despite significant opposition to the elevation of Adeel Mangi to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, it appears confirmed that President Joe Biden has no intention of withdrawing the pick, as Fox News reports.
Biden standing firm
According to a White House official with knowledge of the situation, Biden is taking a firm stand on keeping Mangi in the mix.
As evidence of that stance, administration insiders are reaching out to Democratic senators and asking them to remain strong in supporting the nomination despite mounting Republican pressure against it.
Despite an entreaty to Biden from Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) to pull the nomination, the president is said to be steadfast in his resolve.
Controversial choice
The nomination of Mangi, who would be the first Muslim American jurist to hold such a role, has been in trouble for some time, with Democrats having signaled to the White House that the votes to confirm him may not exist when the time comes.
As the New York Post reported, it was during a heated Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in January that many Republican concerns came to the forefront.
A number of GOP lawmakers raised questions about Mangi's prior involvement as a member of the advisory board for the Rutgers Center for Security, Race, and Rights.
That group has reportedly hosted speakers who have pleaded guilty to association with known terrorists, and the organization is also said to have had ties to terror groups, with one legislator dubbing it “basically a mouthpiece for Hamas.”
Mangi has also been linked to a group known as the Alliance of Families for Justice, whose history includes a founding board member who pleaded guilty in the felony murder deaths of two police officers, killings that were carried out by the Weather Underground Organization, a recognized domestic terrorist group.
Disqualification claimed
Though Democrats such as Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) have chalked opposition to Mangi up to simple Islamophobia, conservative legal advocate Carrie Severino believes that the judge's known associations are sufficiently concerning and that there could be even more affiliations he has not disclosed.
Severino asked, “What more does President Biden need to see in order to withdraw Mangi's nomination, effective immediately?” but the answer now appears to be that he would need to see far more than he has to date.
