White House slams those attacking and opposing judicial nomination of Pakistani-American

The White House defends Pakistani-American lawyer Adeel Mangi's nomination to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, condemning baseless attacks by Senate Republicans, including allegations of anti-police sentiment. If confirmed, Mangi would be the first Muslim-American judge on a federal appellate court. President Biden and the White House urge the Senate to reject hate and confirm Mangi. Amid smears of terrorism ties and antisemitism, Mangi's qualifications and pro-bono work are praised by law enforcement organizations and Jewish groups. The Judicial Crisis Network's false accusations remain unchecked, sparking outrage from supporters.

The White House has slammed those attacking and opposing the nomination of highly accomplished Pakistani-American lawyer Adeel Mangi to serve on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals and said the US Senate must stand against hate.

If confirmed, Mangi would be the first-ever Muslim-American judge to serve on a federal appellate court. President Joe Biden nominated him to the prestigious position in November last year.

"Some Senate Republicans and their extreme allies are relentlessly smearing Adeel Mangi with baseless accusations that he is anti-police. That could not be further from the truth, and the close-to-a-dozen law enforcement organisations that have endorsed him agree," White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients said.

"An immigrant, Mangi, embodies both the American dream and the values that make our country the greatest nation on earth. The United States Senate must stand against hate, must reject baseless claims of guilt by association, and must support Mangi's confirmation," he said in a statement issued by the White House.

Since taking office, President Biden has worked with Majority Leader Schumer and Judiciary Chair Durbin to confirm 190 highly qualified life-tenured federal judges – a significant accomplishment in a narrowly divided Senate, the White House said.

"However, one exceptionally well-qualified individual — Adeel Mangi, nominated by the President to serve on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals — continues to be subjected to baseless, vile attacks, rooted not in his record but in his religion. It is wrong and cruel," it said.

After Biden nominated Mangi to serve on the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, Republican Senators, including Ted Cruz, Tom Cotton, and Josh Hawley, unleashed a cruel, Islamophobic, smear campaign to derail Mangi's nomination, the White House said, adding, "It was vulgar and those Senators owe Mr Mangi an apology." Biden and the White House remain 100 per cent behind Mangi's nomination. "He is exceptionally well-qualified, dedicated to fairness and impartiality, and the rule of law… And yet, Mr Mangi has endured vicious attacks that other judicial nominees have not endured – because he would be the first Muslim judge to ever sit on an appellate court," the White House said.

Matthew J Platkin, New Jersey Attorney General, said Mangi has been falsely and outrageously called a "terrorist". And he has been accused, without a shred of evidence, of being an anti-Semite and of celebrating the Hamas' attacks on October 7 simply because of his Muslim faith, Platkin said.

"These attacks, if left unchecked, send a message to Muslim Americans throughout our nation that when they pledge allegiance, the country for which that flag stands has no place for them. This judicial nominee deserves better. But far more broadly, our Muslim brothers and sisters, and friends and neighbours do, too," he wrote.

Pakistani-American Khizr Khan told CNN that in his pro bono work, Mangi has fought against religious discrimination.

"But what is happening now is nothing short of outrageous, as Republican senators at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in December lobbed question after question not about his legal philosophy or record, but about whether he supports terrorism and Hamas," he said.

Jennifer Bendery wrote in the Huffington Post that Mangi is a 23-year civil litigator based in New Jersey. He was unanimously rated well-qualified by the American Bar Association and has been praised by several organisations, including the AFL-CIO, the Coalition of Underrepresented Law Enforcement Associations and more than a dozen Jewish groups, for both his legal and pro-bono work.

"But for months, Mangi has been the target of blatantly Islamophobic attacks by Republican senators and right-wing groups like the Judicial Crisis Network. This group has run ads accusing Mangi of being a 'radical' and an 'antisemite', and of being involved in an organisation's efforts to teach students 'to hate Israel, to hate America and to support global terrorism'. None of this is true," Bdendery said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)