Opposes controversial judicial nominee

Louisiana GOP Sen. Kennedy opposes controversial Trump judicial nominee

By SEUNG MIN KIM

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) said Tuesday that he would vote “in a heartbeat” against Brett Talley — one of President Donald Trump’s most controversial judicial nominees — as he leveled a harsh criticism of the administration about the caliber of their candidates for the federal bench.

The freshman senator has become a surprising obstacle on judicial nominees for the Trump White House, which has seen remarkable success in filling a historic level of vacancies in the federal judiciary. Kennedy also voted against Gregory Katsas for a seat on the powerful D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday, making him the first Senate Republican to oppose a Trump judicial pick.

In a gaggle with reporters, Kennedy cited a litany of concerns about Talley, who has been nominated for a district court seat in Alabama yet has faced significant pushback. Talley has been rated not qualified by the American Bar Association and has never tried a case in court—while drawing fire for political blog posts that Democratic senators say puts into question whether he can be impartial.

Kennedy supported his nomination in the Senate Judiciary Committee, but that came before the New York Times reported that Talley is married to White House counsel Don McGahn’s chief of staff, which was not disclosed in committee documents.

“I had no idea his connection,” Kennedy said Tuesday of Talley’s marriage to a White House staffer. “And he’s never tried a lawsuit in his natural life. And he’s gonna be on the federal bench? Give me a break. A break. It is embarrassing. And I think the president of the United States is getting some very, very bad advice.”

The Louisiana senator said he would vote against Talley “in a heartbeat — twice, if I can.”

Kennedy said he opposed Katsas’ confirmation to the appellate court in D.C. because of a “conflict of interest” that the senator argued “a first-year law student would see.” Katsas is deputy White House counsel and testified during his confirmation hearing that he worked on the White House’s response to special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe, as well as a series of controversial executive orders.

“He is counsel to the president to the United States,” Kennedy argued. “He’s going to walk across the street and sit on the court that is going to hear cases involving the president and we’re all as Americans supposed to believe that he alone will judge when he has a conflict or not.”

The senator said he’s raised concerns about Trump’s nominees to the White House, but added: “It’s like talking to the wind.”