The Trump Administration has already
established a sterling record of solid judicial nominees, and his nomination of
Howard C. Nielson, Jr. to the federal bench continues that path.
The Washington, DC attorney, who has
yet to be confirmed by the Senate, has come under fire for saying that gay
judges shouldn’t hear cases involving issues that affect the LGBT community.
Nielson first came to national
attention when he served as one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs in Hollingsworth
v. Perry … better known as the “Proposition 8” case. In 2008, California voters approved a
constitutional amendment temporarily banning same-sex “marriage” in the state. Nielson was on the team that sought to defend
the measure in court. When the chief
judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled
that Prop. 8 violated the US Constitution, Nielson filed a motion to nullify
the ruling … arguing that the judge, Vaughn Walker, should have recused himself
because he was in a long-term gay relationship. [Walker had waited until after issuing his
decision to make his sexual orientation public.] Nielson asserted that Judge Walker “had a duty
to disclose not only the facts concerning his relationship, but also his
marriage intentions.” Nielson went
further, saying only if Walker “unequivocally disavowed any interest in
marrying his partner could the parties and the public be confident that he did
not have a direct personal interest in the outcome.”
Nielson’s motion was denied by another
district court judge and the Prop. 8 case eventually made its way to the US
Supreme Court (SCOTUS) … where the Justices ruled in support of Judge Walker’s
decision. That case paved the way for
the Obergefell ruling by SCOTUS 2-years later … legalizing same-sex “marriage”
across the country.
Perhaps the greatest measure of
Nielson’s qualification for the federal bench comes from the magnitude of the
alarm his nomination has raised among progressives. The pro-LGBT Human Rights
Campaign (HRC) website announced in bold capital letters – “SHOCKER! ANOTHER ANTI-LGBTQ JUDICIAL NOMINEE FROM
TRUMP.” The HRC AM Tip-sheet continued,
“Nielson is just the latest in a long line of extreme and unqualified
anti-LGBTQ officials Donald Trump and Mike Pence have appointed and nominated
to crucial agencies and court benches – some of whom will serve lifetime appointments.”
The LGBT publication, The Advocate, said that Neilson is just
“the latest in a string of problematic judicial nominees.” And the very left-leaning judicial watchdog
group, Alliance for Justice, declared that Nielson’s nomination “raises red
flags” because, in part, “in taking a leading role in the effort to prohibit
same-sex marriage in California,” and [Nielson] “argued that a federal judge
should be disqualified from hearing the case solely because he was gay.”
Early in his career Mr. Nielson served
as a law clerk to SCOTUS Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. He went on to serve in the Department of Justice
as Counsel to the Attorney General, supervising high profile litigation. In 2003 Neilson was appointed Deputy
Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel, providing legal
opinions and informal advice to the White House, the Attorney General, and
Executive Branch Departments and Agencies.
“President Trump has made an
outstanding choice to fill the vacancy on Utah’s federal District Court,” said Utah
Senator Orrin Hatch. “Howard Nielson is
a first-rate talent with broad experience and a commitment to the rule of law. He has sterling credentials and a solid
reputation in the legal community. President
Trump promised to make judicial nominations a priority for his administration,
and today, he continued delivering on that promise,” added the Utah Senator. “I applaud the White House for selecting such
an exceptional nominee and look forward to working with my Senate colleagues to
see Howard confirmed,” says Hatch.
Rev.
Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain
(Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel
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