Amy Coney Barrett asserts her voice, carries on Scalia legacy

After her fourth term on the bench, Supreme Court Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett is asserting her voice and following in the footsteps of the late Justice Antonin Scalia, a pioneer of originalism on the high court and her former boss. 

Barrett, appointed by President Donald Trump in October 2020 to fill the seat of the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, surprised some this term by voting in a few key cases with the Democrat-appointed minority.

But legal experts say that the former law professor is proving that her interpretation of the Constitution is consistent with what the Founding Fathers intended, and that disagreements between her and her fellow conservative justices should be "celebrated."

"This term we have seen all the originalist justices engaged in a healthy debate about how to apply tenets of originalism and textualism in many different contexts," Carrie Severino, president of JCN, told Fox News Digital in an interview. "And that is a sign that the originalist project has matured, and that the justices are fleshing out these important principles, and it should be celebrated."

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For many years, a widely lauded and accepted judicial philosophy was that the Constitution was a "living and breathing document." But conservative legal practitioners contested that approach as too volatile to political whims, judicially inappropriate and a departure from what the founders actually wrote in their original intent. 

But in the 1980s, the concept of an originalist interpretation of the law started to grow, largely driven by Reagan-appointed Justice Scalia.  

"It used to be that the late, great, Justice Scalia was basically the only originalist on the court," said John Shu, a constitutional lawyer and former official in both Bush administrations. "Then, in 1991, it became Scalia and Thomas and sometimes Rehnquist. In 2005 and 2006, it became Scalia, Thomas, Roberts, and Alito.  And since 2017, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and of course Justice Barrett joined the Court, and she is very much following in Justice Scalia’s, for whom she clerked, footsteps."

Some experts say that approach bore out this term when Barrett sided with her liberal colleagues in the case in which the majority ruled in favor of a participant in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot who challenged his conviction for a federal "obstruction" crime. 

That case will likely aid the legal arguments of former President Trump who was charged with obstruction, among other crimes, by Special Counsel Jack Smith.

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In her dissent, Barrett wrote that by "narrowing" a federal statute, the Court "failed to respect the prerogatives of the political branches."

"[S]tatutes often go further than the problem that inspired them, and under the rules of statutory interpretation, we stick to the text anyway," Barrett wrote, adding that the Court’s majority abandoned that approach and does "textual backflips to find some way— any way—to narrow the reach" of the statue at issue. 

Severino says that in her dissent, Barrett was "exactly in line" with Scalia's approach to that type of clause.

"Within originalism and textualism, there are people who in some particular instances may disagree on how those principles apply in a specific case," Severino wrote. "So it's not surprising that Barrett is going to have a different approach than Thomas or Alito or Gorsuch or Kavanaugh. They all have their own slightly different flavors, different personality, to exactly how they apply those," Severino said. 

"It’s a great sign that the justices are openly discussing what's the best way to apply originalism and textualism, the original intent and the actual text, which is what good and fair judges are supposed to do," said Shu.

"Justice Barrett’s opinions from this term indicate that the Scalia approach, over time, carried the day," he said.  "He also was great at showing how the originalist perspective is the common-sense perspective, and the one most faithful to the law and to a judge’s responsibilities."

Ilya Shapiro, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, noted that Barrett "was law professor for a long time, so she has a different background than everybody else on the court."

"She's very thoughtful, she's very intellectual, she's very theoretical. She wants to get the theory right. She's a professor's justice," he observed. 

"She’s still very much in the Scalia mode. She's thinking about how to apply history and tradition and what that test means, and getting the theory of the matter right," he said. 

Which he said "was clear in the immunity decision, where she agreed fully with Robert's majority opinion, but said it would have been better to reframe this as an unconstitutional application of criminal law, rather than calling it immunity."

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"She's not a moderate. She's not a centrist. She’s not moving left," Shapiro said. "She’s an originalist and a textualist."

Jennifer Mascott, law professor at Catholic University and former Justice Department official, said Barrett’s writings this term "show a highly intelligent, careful principal jurist who is looking herself, as all the justices do, independently at the questions before her, and just taking the time for the American public to explain in important cases where she may have done something differently than the majority opinion." 

Notably, Barrett authored a concurrence in the case in which the high court unanimously ruled that Colorado could not remove Trump from 2024 election ballot. 

"The Court has settled a politically charged issue in the volatile season of a Presidential election. Particularly in this circumstance, writings on the Court should turn the national temperature down, not up," she wrote. For present purposes, our differences are far less important than our unanimity: All nine Justices agree on the outcome of this case. That is the message Americans should take home."

The former Notre Dame professor is not without criticism on the right, with some conservative observers saying she can be too cautious or timid when it comes to upsetting precedent.

Giancarlo Canaparo, senior fellow at the Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies, says Barrett is "extremely mindful of the difference between conservative judges and conservative politicians, and she's trying very hard to be a conservative judge."

"And that means, I think, for her, not only being faithful to the text of the law and the Constitution, but also making sure that the court doesn't move on a particular issue until it’s sort of aware of the downstream effects on this doctrine or that doctrine," he said.

Canaparo observed that Barrett "needs to feel like she knows everything that can possibly be known" about a matter in order to make a move. 

"She's going to take positions when she feels like she knows everything, which is often in in those few areas where she wrote that she wrote about as a professor, but in other cases, we see areas where she's unwilling to make moves based on whatever information she has on hand, which you know that can be a good thing sometimes. Sometimes not."

But "sometimes, like a general, you've got to go with what information you have," he said. 

"Sometimes it seems like maybe she doesn't actually want a particular party to win, or she doesn't want to make a particular move, and so she uses the claim that there isn't enough information in the record as sort of an out."

Canaparo's critique aside, though, conservative legal watchers appear to sign on to Bush administration veteran John Shu's opinion that, "all in all, I think it’s great that a former Scalia clerk is now on the Court to carry on his legacy."

Federal judge resigns from lifetime-tenured role after just 4 years

A Trump-appointed federal judge in Alaska has resigned after investigators determined he created a hostile work environment, engaged in an inappropriate sexual relationship with a former law clerk and lied about it to his colleagues.

Joshua Kindred resigned from his post as a U.S. District Court judge for Alaska effective Monday after serving just four years on the bench. His resignation letter did not give reasons as to why.

The Judicial Council of the Ninth Circuit on the same day released a 30-page order that detailed its findings into Kindred’s alleged misconduct. 

"We conclude that Judge Kindred committed misconduct by creating a hostile work environment for his law clerks. That hostile work environment included ‘unwanted, offensive, and abusive sexual conduct, including sexual harassment,’" the order states.

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The order described more than 700 pages of text messages between Kindred and his law clerks, many of which were deemed "highly inappropriate." 

In one message, the order states that Kindred told his clerks, "Who gives a f--- about ethics, we need to get you paid." In another, the order says he joked about "punching multiple Supreme Court justices," and bringing Patrón tequila, heroin and "whip-its" – a slang term for a type of inhalant drug – to a dinner party in his chambers.

The council said it also found that Kindred had an "inappropriately sexualized relationship" with a female law clerk during her clerkship and after she became an assistant U.S. attorney for Alaska. 

Kindred engaged in sexual contact with her on two occasions, according to the order. The female former clerk said the second incident, which occurred at an Airbnb where Kindred was staying, was not consensual. Kindred has said it was consensual.

"The Council need not make a finding on whether the Airbnb incident was consensual to conclude that Judge Kindred committed misconduct," the order said.

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When asked about the sexual encounter with his former law clerk during the investigation, Kindred lied to Chief Judge Mary Murguia, the Special Committee and the Council, denying the encounter ever happened until he was put under oath, according to the judges’ order.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, wrote on social media that Kindred’s resignation "is more than appropriate."

"Judges need to be held to the highest of standards and Mr. Kindred fell well short of that mark," Murkowski wrote. "I will be working quickly to advance a replacement nominee for consideration."

Though Kindred has resigned, the matter is not closed. The council referred the case to the Judicial Conference to consider impeachment.

Kindred was appointed to the position by former President Trump in 2019 and was sworn into office in 2020.

Hunter Biden’s wife lashes out at former Trump aide during court appearance: ‘Piece of s—‘

Melissa Cohen Biden – the wife of Hunter Biden – lashed out at a former Trump White House aide during a Tuesday appearance in court to support her husband, who has been charged with three felonies stemming from a 2018 firearm purchase.

Her remarks were directed at Garrett Ziegler, who was sued by Hunter Biden last year for publishing the contents of his infamous laptop.

Approaching Ziegler at the trial, Biden's wife pointed her finger at him and said, "You have no right to be here, you Nazi piece of s---."

Ziegler, who leads the nonprofit group Marco Polo, did not respond to Melissa Cohen Biden's remarks at the time.

Ziegler confirmed the encounter, which was first reported by NBC News, and told the outlet, "It's sad I've been sitting here the whole time and haven’t approached anyone."

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"For the record, I’m not a Nazi, I’m a believer in the U.S. Constitution. I haven’t said one thing to them," Ziegler added.

Regarding Ziegler's encounter with Melissa Cohen Biden, Marco Polo wrote in a tweet, "The wife has the same level of impulse control as Hunter. To the family bringing decency back, anyone who is perceived as opposition is a Nazi."

"Truly contemptible liars & scoundrels," the group added. "We don’t respond in kind in the back of a courtroom, because we’re gentlemen who do not berate women."

Hunter Biden's lawsuit against Ziegler, which was filed last September, alleged that he had violated federal computer laws by hacking into the now-infamous laptop that was left in a Delaware repair shop in 2019.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles, accuses Ziegler and Marco Polo, as well as 10 unidentified associates, of spreading "tens of thousands of emails, thousands of photos, and dozens of videos and recordings" that were considered "pornographic" on the laptop.

Marco Polo is a self-described nonprofit research group "exposing corruption & blackmail." The website has several sections pertaining to Biden’s laptop, including his emails, text messages, phone calls and financial data that culminates into a massive "online searchable database."

In the 14-page civil complaint, Biden’s attorneys allege that Ziegler is a "zealot" who has unleashed a "sustained, unhinged and obsessed campaign" against the entire Biden family for over two years and "spent countless hours accessing, tampering with, manipulating, altering, copying and damaging computer data" with his associates.

"While Defendant Ziegler is entitled to his extremist and counterfactual opinions, he has no right to engage in illegal activities to advance his right-wing agenda," attorneys Abbe Lowell, Bryan Sullivan, Zachary Hansen and Paul Salvaty wrote.

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In March, Ziegler sought to have a judge who was appointed by President Biden removed from the case. He argued that the outcome of the lawsuit not only has implications for the congressional impeachment inquiry, but also the 2024 election.

In a recent motion in U.S. District Court for Central California, Ziegler's attorney, Robert Tyler, requested that Judge Hernán D. Vera recuse himself from the case because his "impartiality will be reasonably questioned." Vera made donations to Joe Biden’s campaign for president in 2020. He also was appointed to his position by President Biden just three months before Hunter Biden filed the lawsuit against Ziegler and one day after then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., announced a presidential impeachment inquiry had commenced in Congress.

Tyler emphasized that he is not arguing against Vera's integrity and assumes the court system assigned the judge to Hunter Biden's lawsuit at random. 

"But there’s something called forum shopping that lawyers do," he told Fox News Digital at the time. "And here’s a case where our client resides in Illinois, he has no contact with California such that California should have any jurisdiction over this case, yet Hunter Biden’s lawyers filed this lawsuit to the Central District of California just shortly after Judge Vera’s appointed."

Hunter Biden's lawsuit seeks a jury trial based on the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and California's Comprehensive Computer Data Access and Fraud Act. 

Ziegler’s attorney counters that the former Trump aide and associates "prepared a credible investigative report," known as the "Report on the Biden Laptop," not to wage a campaign against Hunter Biden, but to "expose instances of foreign compromise" by Hunter Biden and his father, President Biden, which are "matters of great public interest and concern." In preparing the report, Ziegler relied on copies of files from the laptop that "had already been widely circulated since at least October 2020 to numerous media outlets," Tyler wrote.

The repair shop owner turned the laptop over to the FBI on or around October 2019 after discovering its "disturbing materials," Tyler's motion noted.

The motion stated that Ziegler’s website with the Biden laptop report has been accessed by over 5 million Americans since its inception in June 2023 and more than 8 million Americans have accessed the free digital version of the report made available in November 2022.

Fox News' Jamie Joseph and Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.

Biden resists pulling controversial judicial nominee Adeel Mangi despite Democrat defectors

The White House is not taking any cues from Republicans who have advised President Biden to withdraw a controversial judicial nomination.

Instead, it's digging in its heels to lobby Democratic senators to support Adeel Mangi for the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals. 

A White House official updated Fox News Digital on the status of Mangi's nomination, which has been scrutinized over his ties to two groups, one accused of antisemitism and another that has supported "cop killers," as Republican critics have alleged. 

Biden is not considering withdrawing the judicial nomination despite a call from Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. 

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Mangi served on the board of advisers for the Rutgers University Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR) from 2019 to 2023. The center has been accused by Republicans of antisemitism due to its sponsored events and speakers. One such event was held on the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and featured controversial speakers like Hatem Bazian, who in 2004 called for an "intifada," according to video from an anti-war protest in San Francisco, and Sami Al-Arian.

In 2006, Al-Arian pleaded guilty to "conspiring to provide services to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad," according to the Justice Department

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Noura Erakat, who had previously been advertised as a panelist for a separate event alongside Hamas commander Ghazi Hamad, was also hosted at a CSRR event. 

The Alliance of Families for Justice (AFJ), whose founding board member, Kathy Boudin, pleaded guilty to the felony murder of two police officers in 1981 after they died following an armored truck robbery, features Mangi as a current advisory board member. The robbery was carried out by Boudin's group, the Weather Underground Organization, which was recognized as a domestic terrorist organization by the FBI

Neither the CSRR nor AFJ provided comments to Fox News Digital. 

As pressure has been applied by Republican lawmakers and an ad campaign from Judicial Crisis Network targets vulnerable Senate Democrats, Biden's nominee has begun to lose support from his party. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., and Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., have come out publicly against Mangi, citing his AFJ affiliation. 

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., has also complicated the nomination by claiming he won't support anyone who can't garner at least one Republican supporter. 

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"The opposition to Adeel Mangi — in and outside the Senate — is growing by the day," a spokesperson for the Senate Judiciary Republicans told Fox News Digital in a statement. 

"It’s clear the math is not there for the White House," the statement added, calling Biden's decision not to withdraw Mangi's nomination "puzzling indeed."

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates pushed back in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

"President Biden is proud to have chosen Adeel Mangi," he said, calling Mangi "an extraordinarily qualified nominee" and noting he "would make history on the bench" as the first Muslim in such a position.

"The Senate Judiciary Committee has approved Mr. Mangi’s nomination, and the rest of the Senate should side with what makes America the greatest nation on Earth and support him, not cave to vicious, undignified attempts to drag America into the past," Bates added. 

White House chief of staff Jeff Zients, White House Director of Legislative Affairs Shuwanza Goff, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of the Office of Legislative Affairs Ali Nouri, White House Counsel Ed Siskel and White House senior counsel in charge of nominations Phil Brest, continue to press senators to support Mangi, who would be the first Muslim federal appellate court judge, a White House official revealed. 

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Through these officials, the White House is persisting and pushing back on the concerns over Mangi's two group affiliations in question, telling senators they are false and a smear campaign. They are also reiterating to lawmakers that the nominee is qualified for the role. 

Senate Judiciary Chariman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., will also keep up pressure on his colleagues to support Mangi and dismiss what he also considers to be a smear campaign. 

"The treatment of this nominee before the Senate Judiciary Committee has reached a new low in many ways," he said in a recent speech on the chamber floor, insinuating Mangi's status as a Muslim is the reason for opposition to his confirmation.

If Biden does not withdraw Mangi's nomination and it is not scheduled for a confirmation vote in 2024, the nomination will expire on its own. In this case, he would need to be nominated again in the next Congress. 

The nomination has not yet been scheduled for a vote by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who has noted his own support for Mangi but hasn't given any indication whether he plans to schedule a vote. 

Republican strategist Ron Bonjean, a former spokesman to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and former chief of staff of the Senate Republican Conference, said it was "unlikely" Mangi's nomination survives a Senate confirmation. 

"The White House has not put up an aggressive defense of Mangi, which is really sending my message that he should withdraw [on] his own," said Bonjean, who also ran communications for the Senate confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. "Unless the Biden administration changes its strategy, the Mangi nomination is dead in the water."

Mangi did not provide comment to Fox News Digital.

Biden rolls out new endorsements for controversial judicial nominee as Dem support dwindles

The White House is moving forward with its campaign to confirm judicial nominee Adeel Mangi and pushing back on claims that he is antisemitic or against law enforcement, despite several Democratic senators expressing concern over the nominee's organizational ties and casting doubt on his chances of garnering enough votes. 

According to a White House official, Biden's team is keeping the pressure on senators to confirm Mangi, who is nominated to serve on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, dismissing attacks on him as false. The official said those focused on lobbying senators to support the nominee are White House chief of staff Jeff Zients, White House Director of Legislative Affairs Shuwanza Goff, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of the Office of Legislative Affairs Ali Nouri, White House Counsel Ed Siskel, and White House senior counsel in charge of nominations Phil Brest.

Zients said in a statement to Fox News Digital, "Some Senate Republicans and their extreme allies are relentlessly smearing Adeel Mangi with baseless accusations that he is anti-police."

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"That could not be further from the truth and the close to a dozen law enforcement organizations that have endorsed him agree," he said, pointing to several new endorsements of Mangi by three former attorneys general in New Jersey, two former U.S. attorneys who served in the state, the International Law Enforcement Officers Association, the Italian American Police Society of New Jersey and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives. 

"The Senate must confirm Mr. Mangi without further delay," Zients said. 

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Chances of Mangi being confirmed have appeared grim in recent weeks as allegations of antisemitism have been spotlighted due to his previous role on the board of advisers for the Rutgers University Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR). The center has sponsored events, including one on the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, with controversial speakers like Hatem Bazian, who in 2004 called for an "Intifada," according to video from an anti-war protest in San Francisco, and Sami Al-Arian, who in 2006 pleaded guilty to "conspiring to provide services to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad," according to the Justice Department. 

The CSRR has also hosted an event with Noura Erakat, who had previously been advertised as a panelist for a separate event alongside Hamas commander Ghazi Hamad.

Mangi has also been accused of being against law enforcement because of his role as a current advisory board member for the Alliance of Families for Justice (AFJ). The alliance's founding board member, Kathy Boudin, pleaded guilty to the felony murder of two police officers in 1981 after they died during the robbery of an armored truck. The robbery was carried out by Boudin's group, the Weather Underground Organization, which was recognized as a domestic terrorist organization by the FBI. 

Neither the CSRR nor AFJ provided comments to Fox News Digital. 

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told Fox News Digital in a statement, "It is unsurprising that Mangi’s record has split Senate Democrats, and the White House should recognize their error, withdraw Mangi’s nomination, and instead nominate a candidate who can garner widespread bipartisan support."

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said Mangi's "well-known ties to this extreme organization that supports terrorists and cop killers makes him wholly unqualified to serve as an appellate judge."

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Biden's White House has previously hit back at criticism of Mangi, calling it a "malicious and debunked smear campaign" prompted by the nominee's potential to become the first Muslim appellate judge. 

While Judiciary Republicans had already sounded alarm bells over Biden's pick last year after probing Mangi about his connections to the groups, Democratic senators appeared likely to fall in line behind the president's choice. 

However, after a recent report indicated Biden was being privately warned that Mangi may not have enough votes for confirmation, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., revealed she was one of the lawmakers to reach out to the White House with concerns. 

The senator previously confirmed her stance against the nominee to Fox News Digital, citing his connection to AFJ.

Several other Democratic senators recently refused to say whether they would support Mangi.

The office of Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., confirmed to Fox News Digital that he is also committed to voting against Biden's pick. 

Cortez Masto and Manchin were recently joined by Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., who said in a statement, "Given the concerns I’ve heard from law enforcement in Nevada, I am not planning to vote to confirm this nominee."

Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP, the law firm at which Mangi is a partner, did not provide comment to Fox News Digital. 

The loss of any Democratic support is a concern for Mangi's confirmation prospects, given the Senate's close 51-49 split in favor of the Democratic caucus.

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Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., called on Biden last week to withdraw the nomination, and now Republicans are reinforcing their campaign against Mangi's confirmation. 

"The White House can’t defend Adeel Mangi’s record. So, they’re launching personal attacks against anyone who notices the ties to cop-killers and antisemites that Mr. Mangi has forged of his own free will," Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said in a statement. 

He added, "It’s not Islamophobic for senators to recognize" a nominee's failure to meet qualifications. 

"Now even his own Democrat party is rebelling against [Biden]," Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., remarked in a statement, attributing it to the president's "push for radical, anti-Israel nominees."

On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary GOP revealed three additional law enforcement groups were opposing Biden's choice, bringing the total to 17. The Pennsylvania Fraternal Order of Police, Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 and Pennsylvania State Troopers Association penned a joint letter to Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.; Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill.; Ranking Member Graham; and Pennsylvania Sens. Bob Casey and John Fetterman, who are both Democrats. 

The court that Mangi has been nominated to serve on is located in Philadelphia. 

The Pennsylvania-based groups noted their letter is on behalf of over 40,000 members requesting that the Senate "reject the nomination" of Mangi, citing his AFJ affiliation. 

Senate Democrats could spoil Biden’s Muslim judicial nominee over ‘deeply concerning’ ties

President Biden's chosen nominee for the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals is in danger of failing to garner enough votes to be confirmed in the Senate after concerns rose over his affiliations with groups tied to criminal and alleged antisemitic figures.

Adeel Mangi is a partner at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP and received his master of laws degree from Harvard Law School in 2000. The nomination would be a first for Biden. Mangi would be the only Muslim to serve on a federal appeals court if confirmed. 

However, Senate Republicans and Democrats have expressed concern over the nominee in recent days, putting his confirmation at risk. With a roughly evenly divided Senate, Mangi likely needs the support of every Democrat in the body, as well as all three independents. 

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Mangi has been affiliated with both the Center for Security, Race and Rights (CSRR) at Rutgers Law School and the Alliance of Families for Justice (AFJ), both of which have controversial records. 

The CSRR has hosted numerous speakers that the advocacy group Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ and watchdog group Judicial Crisis Network (JCN), among others, have accused of antisemitism. The speakers included associate professor Noura Erakat, who was advertised in 2020 to be participating in a panel alongside senior Hamas leader Ghazi Hamad. Many of the center's events that have been subject to public outcry have notably occurred after Hamas' Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel. 

The group has also welcomed speakers who have been accused by JCN and others of sympathizing with terrorists connected to the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York City. 

Mangi served on the organization's advisory board from 2019 to 2023.

The AFJ also has ties that concern some lawmakers. One of its founding board members, Kathy Boudin, was affiliated with the FBI-designated domestic terrorist organization Weather Underground and pleaded guilty to murdering two police officers and a security guard in 1981 while robbing an armored truck. 

Mangi is listed as a current advisory board member for AFJ. 

"Mr. Mangi’s affiliation with the Alliance of Families for Justice is deeply concerning," Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada said in a statement to Fox News Digital Wednesday. 

"This organization has sponsored a fellowship in the name of Kathy Boudin, a member of the domestic terrorist organization Weather Underground, and advocated for the release of individuals convicted of killing police officers. I cannot support this nominee." 

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Cortez Masto's potential defection could upend Biden's effort to confirm Mangi. The Nevada senator revealed Tuesday she was one of the Democrats who privately warned Biden about a lack of support for his nominee. A report had previously alleged several senators told the White House Mangi may not be able to earn enough votes for confirmation. 

A number of Democratic senators refused to say whether they would support Mangi's nomination, including Bob Casey, D-Pa., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., who are both up for re-election in competitive matchups in November. 

"When there's a vote scheduled, we'll talk about it then," said Casey. 

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The Pennsylvania senator declined to address whether he had reservations about the nominee. 

"I give every nominee serious consideration," Baldwin said. "We're looking at it right now."

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has already raised concerns over Mangi.

"It is becoming more and more clear every day that Mangi is not going to have the votes to get confirmed," Cruz told Fox News Digital. "And it was foolish for President Biden to nominate an individual who has a record of serving on the board of an organization that has rationalized and apologized for 9/11 and has welcomed radical terrorists to its programming."

The only question left, he said, is "how long the White House will let Mr. Mangi hang out on a limb."

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At the same time, many Democrats reiterated their plan to support Mangi when speaking to Fox News Digital Tuesday.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., said he will vote to confirm Biden's nominee "as I did in committee."

"No worries," Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., said of her support for Mangi. 

But with such a divided upper chamber, it may only require a few Democratic votes to prevent his confirmation, making the support of the rest of the caucus moot. 

Republican efforts to highlight Mangi's controversies came to a head Wednesday, when Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., called on Biden to withdraw his nomination. 

"It has been a long-standing position of mine to give great deference to executive appointments, particularly judicial appointments, for both parties," he said in a press release. "However, it is clear to me that concerns about this nomination are widespread, not just among Republicans in the Senate.

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"I urge President Biden to seriously listen to these concerns and withdraw Mr. Mangi’s nomination."

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the White House defended the president's choice for the court. 

"President Biden is proud to have nominated Adeel Mangi, whose extraordinary qualifications and integrity are gaining him new backing each day, including from the seventh law enforcement organization to endorse his confirmation, as well as retired circuit Judge Timothy Lewis, who was appointed by President George H.W. Bush," said White House spokesperson Andrew Bates. 

He claimed Mangi is "being targeted by a malicious and debunked smear campaign solely because he would make history as the first Muslim to serve as a federal appellate judge."

Bates further urged Senate Democrats to "side with the qualities that make America exceptional — which Mr. Mangi embodies — not the hateful forces trying to force America into the past."  

Fox News Digital has reached out to CSRR, AFJ and Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP, where Mangi is a partner, for comment.

DOJ further acknowledges Hunter Biden’s laptop is real, contents match Apple iCloud backups

Federal prosecutors further acknowledged in court documents filed Tuesday that the laptop Hunter Biden dropped off at a computer store is in fact real, adding that the contents on the laptop matched what had previously been obtained through a search warrant on the president’s son’s Apple iCloud.

In the court documents, the Department of Justice said the IRS and FBI obtained a search warrant for tax violations in August 2019 and were able to get access to Hunter’s Apple iCloud account.

By September 2021, Apple produced backups of data from various electronic devices Hunter backed up to his iCloud account.

"Investigators also later came into possession of the defendant's Apple MacBook Pro, which he left at a computer store," the court filing reads. "A search warrant was also obtained for his laptop and the results of the search were largely duplicative of information investigators had already obtained from Apple."

HUNTER BIDEN'S GUN POUCH HAD COCAINE RESIDUE ON IT, PROSECUTORS SAY

In 2020, John Paul Mac Isaac, a computer repair shop owner who turned over the laptop belonging to the president’s son to authorities and members of the press, said a man he believed to be Hunter dropped off three laptops in his store in April 2019. Only one of the laptops was salvageable, and while repairing the laptop, Mac Isaac said he discovered disturbing material.

Mac Isaac could not get in touch with the customer, and said he first searched the emails by keyword in June or July 2019.

The laptop saga began in October 2020, when the New York Post reported about a 2015 email from a Ukrainian energy executive to Hunter, thanking him for introducing him to his father, that it obtained from the hard drive of Hunter's laptop. Joe Biden was vice president at the time of the message, and his son then enjoyed a lucrative position on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian energy firm, raising concerns of attempted influence-peddling with his powerful father. 

The laptop's content included a peek into Hunter's overseas business dealings, as well as more sordid material like homemade sex tapes and videos showing him using illegal drugs. 

The laptop was widely dismissed by print and television outlets, especially The New York Times, The Washington Post, MSNBC and CNN. 

Twitter and Facebook blocked or limited sharing of the New York Post's article about Biden. Twitter even locked the New York Post out of its account for weeks.

But in February 2023, the first son admitted that the laptop at the center of a federal investigation belonged to him in a letter from his lawyers.

HOUSE COMMITTEES APPROVE RESOLUTION TO HOLD HUNTER BIDEN IN CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS, MOVES TO FLOOR

At the time, journalist Miranda Devine, who authored the book "Laptop from Hell," tweeted about Hunter’s admission, saying it was not Russian disinformation or a "plant," as the president and 51 dishonest former intel officials pretended. The 51 intel officials she referred to were the 51 intelligence experts who signed a letter casting doubt on the scandal.

HUNTER BIDEN INDICTED ON FEDERAL GUN CHARGES

In June 2023, the DOJ said it knew in December 2019 that the laptop was "not manipulated in any way" and contained "reliable evidence," but was "obstructed" from seeing all available information, according to an IRS whistleblower involved in the probe.

The admission revealed the DOJ knew the laptop was not manipulated nearly a year before the intelligence officials and President Biden declared it was planted as part of a Russian disinformation campaign.

IF BIDEN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY IS VALID, WHY HAS THE PRESIDENT LIED ABOUT HIS COMPLICITY?

Court records allege that the searches revealed incriminating evidence, like the first son’s addiction to controlled substances and his possession of a firearm.

For example, the court documents say prior to Oct. 12, 2018, when Hunter obtained a firearm, he took photos of crack cocaine and drug paraphernalia on his phone. He also sent messages "routinely" about purchasing drugs.

During the two days after Hunter purchased the firearm, he messaged his girlfriend about meeting a drug dealer and smoking crack, court documents say.

The documents also show Hunter messaged about sleeping on a car and smoking crack, efforts by his then-girlfriend to discard the firearm, and how his devices contained photos and videos of "apparent cocaine, crack cocaine and drug paraphernalia."

Hunter Biden’s gun pouch had cocaine residue on it, prosecutors claim

Federal prosecutors claim a brown leather pouch used by Hunter Biden to store a gun had cocaine on it.

On Tuesday, prosecutors asked a judge to reject President Biden’s son Hunter’s efforts to dismiss gun charges because investigators found cocaine residue on the pouch used to hold his gun.

HOUSE COMMITTEES APPROVE RESOLUTION TO HOLD HUNTER BIDEN IN CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS, MOVES TO FLOOR

Prosecutors told the judge, "the strength of the evidence against him is overwhelming," rejecting Hunter Biden’s claims that he was being singled out for political reasons.

Hunter Biden previously made incriminating statements about his drug use in a 2021 memoir, but now investigators are saying the cocaine was found on the gun pouch after it was pulled from a state police vault last year.

A chemist with the FBI, prosecutors claimed, determined the residue was cocaine.

IF BIDEN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY IS VALID, WHY HAS THE PRESIDENT LIED ABOUT HIS COMPLICITY?

"To be clear, investigators literally found drugs on the pouch where the defendant had kept his gun," prosecutors said.

The president's son had pleaded not guilty to federal gun charges in U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware in October, accusing him of lying about using drugs in October 2018 on a gun purchase form.

He has acknowledged struggling with a crack cocaine addiction during that period in 2018, but his attorneys claim he did not break the law. Hunter Biden has since said he has stopped using drugs and is working to turn his life around.

Hunter Biden was charged with making a false statement in the purchase of a firearm; making a false statement related to information required to be kept by a federal firearms licensed dealer; and one count of possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance. 

HUNTER BIDEN INDICTED ON FEDERAL GUN CHARGES

According to the indictment, "on or about October 12, 2018, in the District of Delaware, the defendant, Robert Hunter Biden, in connection with the acquisition of a firearm, that is, a Colt Cobra 38SPL Revolver with serial number RA 551363…knowingly made a false and fictitious written statement, intended and likely to deceive that dealer with respect to a fact material to the lawfulness of the sale of the firearm…in that the defendant, Robert Hunter Biden, provided a written statement on Form 4473 certifying he was not an unlawful user of, and addicted to, any stimulant, narcotic drug, and any other controlled substance, when in fact, as he knew, that statement was false and fictitious." 

The indictment also states that "on or about October 12, 2018, through on or about October 23, 2018, in the District of Delaware, the defendant Robert Hunter Biden, knowing that he was an unlawful user of and addicted to any stimulant, narcotic drug, and any other controlled substance…did knowingly possess a firearm, that is, a Colt Cobra 38SPL revolver with serial number RA 551363, said firearm having been shipped and transported in interstate commerce." 

Fox News first reported in 2021 that police had responded to an incident in 2018, when a gun owned by Hunter Biden was thrown into a trash can outside a market in Delaware.

A source with knowledge of the Oct. 23, 2018, police report told Fox News that it indicated that Hallie Biden, who is the widow of President Biden's late son, Beau, and who was in a relationship with Hunter at the time, threw a gun owned by Hunter in a dumpster behind a market near a school.

A firearm transaction report reviewed by Fox News indicated that Hunter Biden purchased a gun earlier that month.

On the firearm transaction report, Hunter Biden answered in the negative when asked if he was "an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance."

Hunter Biden was discharged from the Navy in 2014 after testing positive for cocaine.

Fox News' Brooke Singman and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Federal appeals court rejects Trump petition over Special Counsel Jack Smith access to Twitter feed

A federal appeals court has rejected former President Trump’s request to block Special Counsel Jack Smith from accessing his then-Twitter feed as part of his election interference case.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for Washington, D.C., ruled on the matter and denied further review. The decision comes after an appellate panel had rejected the original request.

Twitter, now "X," had initiated the appeals, seeking to block special counsel access to the records the company held.

Smith had noted he could have gotten the material from the National Archives, which gained the material after Trump left office, but that would have triggered notice to Trump, so a search warrant was requested through the company under seal and with a non-disclosure notice. That, in turn, prevented Trump from raising any executive privilege claims over the digital communications.

The four conservative judges on the appeals court dissented and would have granted en banc review.

Judge Rao (a Trump bench appointee) wrote a statement, saying the executive privilege claims should have been addressed.

"The absence of a presumptive privilege particularly threatens the Chief Executive when, as here, a third party holds presidential communications. See Mazars, 140 S. Ct. at 2035. And to be sure it aggrandizes the courts, which will have the power to determine whether executive privilege will be considered before its breach. Without a presumption for executive privilege, new questions will invariably arise, particularly because nothing in the panel’s opinion is limited to a former President. What if, in the course of a criminal investigation, a special counsel sought a warrant for the incumbent President’s communications from a private email or phone provider? Under this court’s decision, executive privilege isn’t even on the table, so long as the special counsel makes a showing that a warrant and nondisclosure order are necessary to the prosecution. And following the Special Counsel’s roadmap, what would prevent a state prosecutor from using a search warrant and nondisclosure order to obtain presidential communications from a third-party messaging application? And how might Congress benefit from this precedent when it seeks to subpoena presidential materials from third parties in an investigation or impeachment inquiry?"

"Upon consideration of appellant’s petition for rehearing en banc, the response thereto, the amicus curiae brief filed by Electronic Frontier Foundation in support of rehearing en banc, and the absence of a request by any member of the court for a vote, it is ordered that the petition be denied," the ruling states.

The former president and 2024 GOP presidential front-runner can now ask the Supreme Court to review the matter. 

Smith plans to use data from the cellphone that Trump used in his final weeks in office, including data revealing when Trump’s phone was "unlocked and the Twitter application was open" on Jan. 6, 2021.

Unsealed court filings in August showed that Smith's team obtained location data and draft tweets in addition to the former president's messages.

Attorneys for the company, now named X Corp., attempted to block and delay the effort in January and February, leading one federal judge to speculate that X owner and one-time CEO Elon Musk was attempting to ally himself with Trump.

The social media giant ultimately lost the struggle, however, and was forced to hand over an extensive list of data related to the "@realdonaldtrump" account, including all tweets "created, drafted, favorited/liked, or retweeted."

The handover also included searches on the platform surrounding the 2020 election, devices used to log into the account, IP addresses used to log into the account, and a list of associated accounts.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Justice Department sues Texas over law to let police arrest illegal immigrants

The Justice Department on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against Texas over a state law allowing authorities to arrest illegal immigrants, pitting Republican Gov. Greg Abbott against the Biden administration as both remain at odds over how to handle the escalating crisis at the southern border. 

The lawsuit, filed in an Austin federal court, came after Abbott signed into law last month a measure challenging the federal government's authority over immigration matters. In addition to Biden, several blue cities like New York and Chicago have pushed back against Abbott for having thousands of migrants bussed from his state to their jurisdictions. 

"The United States brings this action to preserve its exclusive authority under federal law to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens," the lawsuit states. "Texas cannot run its own immigration system. "Its efforts, through SB 4, intrude on the federal government’s exclusive authority to regulate the entry and removal of noncitizens, frustrate the United States’ immigration operations and proceedings, and interfere with U.S. foreign relations."

JOHNSON CALLS MIGRANT CRISIS ‘TRULY UNCONSCIONABLE’ DURING VISIT TO BESIEGED SOUTHERN BORDER

Texas is also fighting a separate court battle over the installation of razor wire on the Rio Grande and a floating barrier, which has angered Mexican leaders as well. 

Under the Texas law, migrants could either agree to a judge's order to leave the U.S. or be prosecuted on misdemeanor charges of illegal entry. Those who don't leave could face serious felony charges if arrested again.

Those ordered to leave would be sent to ports of entry along the border with Mexico, even if they are not Mexican citizens. The law can be enforced anywhere in Texas but some places are off-limits, including schools and churches.

HOUSE HOMELAND SECURITY COMMITTEE SETS FIRST MAYORKAS IMPEACHMENT HEARING

Fox News Digital has reached out to Abbott's office. 

Last week, the Justice Department sent Abbott a letter threatening legal action unless Texas reversed course. In response, Abbott posted on X that the Biden administration "not only refuses to enforce current U.S. immigration laws, they now want to stop Texas from enforcing laws against illegal immigration."

The governor has repeatedly accused the Biden administration of failing to address issues at the border amid record numbers of migrants crossing into the United States. The bussing program has angered Democrats in blue cities, who say their jurisdictions lack sufficient resources to care for migrants they've received. 

Illegal crossings along the southern U.S. border topped 10,000 on several days in December, a number that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Commissioner Troy Miller called "unprecedented." U.S. authorities closed cargo rail crossings in Eagle Pass and El Paso for five days last month, calling it a response to many migrants riding freight trains through Mexico to the border.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.