Staff Reports
Regarding President Biden's judicial nominees, there seems to be an increasing detachment from the pragmatics of the legal system. Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana, who exposed the inexperience and lack of expertise of Biden's candidate, Robin M. Meriweather, for the Court of Federal Claims, highlighted this tendency lately.
Senator Kennedy asked Meriweather a direct question on the number of motions she had argued in the Court of Federal Claims during the interrogation. Despite claiming to have handled "hundreds of motions involving complex civil claims in numerous courts," Meriweather made a startling admission when he said that "the court of federal claims is not one of those courts." This revelation begs questions about Meriweather's comprehension of the fundamentals of the court that she hopes to work on.
John Kennedy Stumps Another Biden Nominee With Simple Question
https://t.co/5OEKwensH9— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 26, 2024
The shortcomings did not stop there. Meriweather sidestepped the senator's question and did not directly answer it when he was questioned about the justification for giving a fresh trial in the Court of Federal Claims. Her answers seemed to sidestep the subject, indicating a basic ignorance of the legal system.
Senator Kennedy's conversation with Meriweather highlighted her apparent lack of training, experience, and readiness for the position for which she was nominated. Though she seemed to have a great deal of civil experience and to be conversant with federal regulations, she stumbled when asked to clarify the conditions under which a new trial may be granted in either the federal district court or the Court of Federal Claims.
This pattern with Biden's nominations is concerning because it implies that qualifications and ability may not be given as much weight as diversity and checking boxes. This raises the question of whether prejudices against particular groups are present during the nomination process, or if certain candidates' qualifications are being disregarded.
The conversation with Meriweather only serves to confirm the sense that, during the Biden administration, officials and employees are being appointed more in accordance with box-ticking procedures than with their proven ability to carry out their jobs well. In order to make sure that only the most competent people are assigned to important posts, it is desired that the Senate would carefully consider and investigate each of President Biden's judicial nominations.
