Bondi Cuts ABA's Access to Judicial Picks, Claims Bias

Attorney General Pam Bondi formally notified the American Bar Association on Thursday that the Department of Justice will no longer participate in the organization's vetting process for judicial nominees.

In a letter to ABA President William Bay, Bondi accused the professional group of a biased rating process that rejects Republican nominees.

"Unfortunately, the ABA no longer functions as a fair arbiter of nominees' qualifications, and its ratings invariably and demonstrably favor nominees put forth by Democratic administrations," Bondi wrote, according to The Hill.

"Accordingly, while the ABA is free to comment on judicial nominations along with other activist organizations, there is no justification for treating the ABA differently from such other activist organizations and the Department of Justice will not do so," she said.

"Specifically, the Office of Legal Policy will no longer direct nominees to provide waivers allowing the ABA access to non-public information, including bar records. Nominees will also not respond to questionnaires prepared by the ABA and will not sit for interviews with the ABA."

Thursday's action isn't the first time the Trump White House has cut off the association's access to judicial nominees, taking a similar stance in the president's first term.

Of President Donald Trump's 264 nominees, the ABA rated 187 "well-qualified," 67 "qualified," and 10 "not qualified," according to Ballotpedia. In their time in office, other recent administrations had a significantly smaller number of nominees that the organization rated unqualified.

Since returning to office, Trump has taken aim at the ABA with a range of actions, including an executive order that directed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to consider suspending the ABA as a law school accreditor.

The organization filed a lawsuit against the Department of Justice after it canceled grants that fund services for those affected by domestic and sexual violence.

Judge Christopher R. Cooper found that the administration violated the ABA's First Amendment rights in stripping the grants.

"The government does not meaningfully contest the merits of the ABA's First Amendment retaliation claim," Cooper, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, wrote in his opinion. "It points to no deficiencies in the ABA's performance of its grant obligations. It concedes that similar grants administered by other organizations remain in place."

"It agrees that bringing a lawsuit is protected by the First Amendment," he said. "And it suggests no other cause for the cancellation apart from the sentiments expressed by Deputy Attorney General [Todd] Blanche in his memorandum."

Newsmax reached out to the ABA for comment, but did not receive an immediate response.

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