The Congressional Black Caucus thanked Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Thursday for signaling his opposition to President Obama’s judicial nomination of Michael Boggs.
“Thank you for publicly expressing your opposition to the confirmation of Michael P. Boggs to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia,” Chairwoman Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) said in a letter posted by The Huffington Post. “I respect and appreciate your concern for the people of Georgia and minority communities across the nation.” [READ THE LETTER HERE.]
{mosads}Boggs has faced criticism from Democrats for positions he took as a state legislator more than a decade ago on abortion rights, the confederate flag and gay marriage. Earlier in the week, Reid signaled that he could not vote for the nominee unless he got more satisfactory answers on his past positions.
“Boggs is not somebody I’m going to vote for unless I have some explanations on why he did that deal with the rebel flag and things he’s said about abortion,” Reid told Buzzfeed on Wednesday.
On Thursday, he reiterated his opposition.
Reid’s statements came after the Senate Judiciary Committee heard testimony from the nominee at a hearing in which a number of Democrats expressed their reservations.
A number of Congressional Black Caucus members have been consistently vocal about their opposition to the nomination of Boggs, who was part in a larger deal on a slate of judicial nominations brokered between the administration and Georgia senators.
The White House has defended the nomination, saying Boggs’s decade of experience as a trial and appellate judge since his time as a legislator prove he is qualified for the federal bench.