Trump Nominates One of His Own Legal Advisers to Appeals Court Bench

The White House on Wednesday announced that President Donald Trump had nominated a bloc of six new federal judicial nominees, continuing the administration’s effort to reshape the federal courts with what observers are calling “conservative” jurists.

The most notable appointment of Trump’s latest slate of judges is Steven J. Menashi of New York, who was nominated to serve as a Circuit Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. If confirmed by the Senate, Menashi would be Trump’s fourth appointment to the Second Circuit, and leave the court with an even split between active jurists appointed by presidents from each political party.

Menashi, who is currently a Special Assistant to the President and Senior Associate Counsel to the President, previously served as Acting General Counsel at the Department of Education under Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.

Edward Whelan, the President of the Ethics and Public Policy Center and contributor to National Review Online was pleased with the President’s choice, saying Menashi’s nomination was “excellent news.”

“Menashi is well known and very highly regarded in conservative legal circles,” Whelan tweeted.

However, public interest litigator at Public Citizen Litigation Group Adam Pulver, who previously worked as a Senior Attorney at the Office of the Solicitor of Labor at the U.S. Department of Labor said that Menashi’s work at the Department of Education could be a cause for concern.

“Menashi was Deputy [General Counsel] for postsecondary education and heavily involved in many of Devos’s attempts to protect industry over students,” Pulver tweeted.

President Trump also nominated Jodi W. Dishman of Oklahoma, to serve as Judge on the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma; Karen S. Marston of Pennsylvania, to serve as Judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania; Richard E. Myers II of North Carolina, to serve as Judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina; Sarah E. Pitlyk of Missouri, to serve as Judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri; and Anuraag “Raag” Singhal of Florida, to serve as Judge on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

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