WASHINGTON — The nominee who could become the first Muslim-American to serve as a federal appeals court judge is fighting back against the characterization of his work by law enforcement groups that is putting his nomination in jeopardy. The White House and Senate are redoubling their efforts to win over lawmakers, but it may be too late.
Adeel Mangi holds law degrees from Oxford and Harvard. He works at a prestigious law firm and has achieved significant legal victories. But his limited volunteer work with two outside groups has put his nomination in jeopardy.
Some law enforcement groups have told lawmakers that Mangi’s work as an advisory board member for the Alliance of Families for Justice is disqualifying. That takes away support — not just from key Democrats, but also from some Republicans who have at times been willing to back President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees.
Mangi has taken the unusual step of writing to his home state’s senator to explain his work with the alliance. To counter the opposition, he and the White House are emphasizing that other law enforcement groups support him. The intensity of the battle underlines the high stakes as Biden and Democrats look to shape the makeup of the federal judiciary while in control of the White House and Senate.
The Alliance of Families for Justice provides legal assistance to people in prison and resources for their families, including counseling. Law enforcement groups have highlighted that Kathy Boudin was a board member of the group after serving more than two decades behind bars for her role in a fatal 1981 armored truck robbery.
The robbery resulted in the deaths of a security guard and two police officers. During her time in prison, Boudin expressed remorse and worked to help prisoners with AIDS. She also developed a program about parenting behind bars. She continued her efforts to help prisoners and their families after her early release. Law enforcement groups in New York were outraged by her release, and the state’s then-governor expressed his opposition.
The National Association of Police Organizations said Mangi’s work with the group “demonstrates an anti-victim and anti-police bias that would certainly cloud his decision-making as a judge.” The National Sheriffs’ Association also expressed “united opposition” to his appointment.
Three Democrats have spoken out against Mangi’s nomination: Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Sens. Jacky Rosen and Catherine Cortez Masto, both of Nevada. Nevada senators specifically cited opposition from law enforcement in their reasoning. Their position means that Mangi will almost certainly need the support of some Republicans to be confirmed, and there are scant signs of such support.
The Democrats are not giving up. Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey said “conversations are underway on both sides of the aisle” about the nomination.
Mangi strongly denied that he had any anti-police bias in the letter he wrote to Booker, saying that “any suggestion that I sympathize with attacks on law enforcement is shocking and false.” He said the advisory board he was invited to at the Alliance of Families for Justice has never met.
He was invited to serve on that board because he led a pro bono lawsuit related to the death of a mentally ill black inmate at New York’s Sullivan Correctional Facility. That lawsuit led to a historic settlement that included a requirement for cameras and microphones throughout the jail, which he said increased security for corrections staff. He said he no longer litigates cases based on referrals from the group.
He also made it clear that the advocacy group has an entirely separate board of directors responsible for oversight and governance. He has never had a role in the board. As for Boudin, he has no memory of meeting her, and to the extent that there was a community in her name, he was not involved.
Mangi noted that some law enforcement groups support him, including the Hispanic American Law Enforcement Association and the Muslim American Law Enforcement Association. The International Law Enforcement Officers Association urged the Senate to quickly confirm Mangi, saying that “his record clearly demonstrates his respect for the rule of law and the critical role of law enforcement in promoting public safety.”
In recent days, senior White House officials, including Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, have tried to save Mangi’s nomination. They have called on senators to highlight his legal credentials and denounce what the government has branded as defamation.
“Some Senate Republicans and their extreme allies are relentlessly smearing Adeel Mangi with baseless accusations that he is anti-police,” Zients said. “That couldn’t be further from the truth and the nearly a dozen law enforcement organizations that supported him agree. The Senate must confirm Mr. Mangi without further delay.”
Mangi’s nomination has also drawn criticism from some Jewish groups, which highlight his past ties to Rutgers University’s Center for Security, Race and Rights. The center engages in research and education on policies that negatively impact America’s Muslim, Arab and South Asian communities.
Mangi served on an advisory board for about four years until mid-2023. He said his work was limited to participating in four meetings over four years that focused on academic research.
Republicans have tried to associate him with comments made by others in the center that they view as anti-Semitic. He was asked about the numerous speakers the center has invited and whether he agreed with their statements.
Mangi said he should not be held responsible for statements made by others in events he was unaware of until senators brought it up during his confirmation hearing.
The Anti-Defamation League has defended Mangi, saying he was subjected to aggressive interrogations that had nothing to do with his professional expertise. The ADL is considered a leader in the fight against anti-Semitism.
“Just as associating Jewish-Americans with certain views or beliefs regarding Israeli government actions would be considered anti-Semitic, tarring America’s first Muslim federal judicial nominee with endless questions that appear to be motivated by prejudice against his religion completely wrong,” the ADL said. said in a statement.
The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced Mangi’s nomination in January on a party-line vote of 11 to 10. But he has clearly lost ground since then. Supporters say he has been treated unfairly because of his faith.
“Based on his track record, you would think that Mr. Mangi would be appointed quickly, but I left out one fact on his resume. He is a Muslim American,” Senator Dick Durbin, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said on Tuesday. “The treatment of this nominee before the Senate Judiciary Committee has in many ways reached a new low.”
Republican leader Mitch McConnell has remained steadfast in his opposition to Mangi and has repeatedly spoken out against him in the Senate. On Tuesday, he noted Mangi’s “almost unprecedented move” by writing to Booker to deny “any real knowledge of any organization on whose advisory board he sits.”
“There are only two explanations: either Mr. Mangi is so careless that he repeatedly failed to conduct the simplest due diligence before joining advisory boards of radical groups, or he deliberately joined these groups.
“Both of these things make him unfit for this lifetime appointment,” McConnell said.
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Associated Press writer Seung Min Kim contributed to this report.