Opinion: Our spineless U.S. Senate abandons a qualified judge
After more than a year of twisting in the wind, it is official: Adeel Mangi, President Joe Biden’s nominee to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, will not become the nation’s first Muslim federal appellate judge. This was perhaps inevitable.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, the majority leader, cut a deal with Republicans last month to abandon four appeals court nominees who didn’t have the votes to win in exchange for not obstructing the confirmation of about a dozen circuit court justices.
It was not surprising that Mangi, a Pakistani American corporate litigator with a strong record of community service, was the subject of anti-Muslim smears by Republicans. What really doomed his candidacy, however, was opposition from front-line Senate Democrats.
They claimed that their opposition was motivated not by anti-Muslim prejudice but by a second line of attack Republicans tried after numerous Jewish groups rushed to his defense, citing his extensive pro bono work on religious freedom cases. Mangi, Republicans claimed, with zero credible evidence, supported releasing prisoners convicted of killing police officers.
These attacks were without merit, and it is shameful that two Democratic senators, Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, both of Nevada, gave them any credence. The failure to confirm Mangi before Democrats lose their majority is yet another preview of the way capitulation, not courage, in the face of Trumpist forces will be the order of the day for some time to come.
Failed nominees to such offices often shuffle off pretty quietly. Mangi made a different and more courageous choice: He sent a blistering letter to Biden, thanking him for the nomination and support but decrying the process as a farce and excoriating the Democrats who abandoned his nomination.
He wrote, “I will not assume the worst possible motivation for their embrace of this attack. But to me that leaves two possibilities: that these Senators lack the wisdom to discern the truth, which exposes a catastrophic lack of judgment; or they used my nomination to court conservative voters in an election year, which exposes a catastrophic lack of principle.”
The letter continues: “Our country faces an incoming tsunami of bigotry, hatred and discrimination. It targets Muslims, Arabs, Jews, Black people, the LGBTQ+ community and many others. And it always pretends to be something other than what it is. These forces are fueled not only by their proponents, but equally by the collaboration and silence of the spineless.”
Reading this passionate letter made me think that Mangi would have made an excellent appellate judge, one much needed in this cruel new era. It is a shame he won’t get the chance.
Lydia Polgreen is a New York Times columnist.