Donald Trump isn’t one of your lifetime members of the political class. He’s a billionaire real estate tycoon and TV star who has been in the public eye for 30 years, and yet somehow his supporters think he’s not part of “the establishment.” That’s true, inasmuch as his he has a complete lack of political experience and doesn’t know many people in politics. This means that many of those he’s appointed to top-level federal government positions are inappropriate at best — such as Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson for Secretary of State — and woefully, horribly unqualified at worst, like Matthew Spencer Petersen.
Trump tapped Petersen, a member of the Federal Election Commission, to fill a for-life position on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. To actually get the job, judicial candidates have to be confirmed by the Senate — it’s a very valuable and necessary vetting process designed to weed out people like, well, Petersen.
MUST WATCH: Republican @SenJohnKennedy asks one of @realDonaldTrump’s US District Judge nominees basic questions of law & he can’t answer a single one. Hoo-boy. pic.twitter.com/fphQx2o1rc
— Sheldon Whitehouse (@SenWhitehouse) December 15, 2017
Petersen’s Senate confirmation hearing was held yesterday. During the process, Sen. John Kennedy (a Republican from Louisiana) asked Petersen and some other judicial nominees about their courtroom experience. Petersen, inexplicably and alarmingly, appears to possess very little.
KENNEDY: Have you ever tried a jury trial?
PETERSEN: I have not.
KENNEDY: Civil?
PETERSEN: No.
KENNEDY: Criminal?
PETERSEN: No.
KENNEDY: Bench?
PETERSEN: No.
KENNEDY: State or federal court?
PETERSEN: I have not.
At that point, the Senate should have probably dismissed Petersen and told him to never come back. But the questioning continued, and Petersen dug himself an even bigger hole of ignorance and inexperience. He couldn’t answer questions about the “Daubert Standard” or “motion in limine” —legalese, sure, but things a judge should know.
KENNEDY: As a trial judge, you’re obviously going to have witnesses. Can you tell me what the Daubert Standard is?
PETERSEN: Senator Kennedy, I don’t have that readily at my disposal, but I would be happy to take a closer look at that. That is not something I’ve had to contend with.
KENNEDY: Do you know what a motion in limine is?
PETERSEN: Yes…I haven’t, I’m, again, my background is not in litigation.
And so it went.
KENNEDY: Do you know what the Younger abstention doctrine is?
PETERSEN: Um, I’ve heard of it…but I, again…
KENNEDY: How about the Pullman abstention doctrine?
PETERSEN: I…I heard…
KENNEDY: Y’all see that a lot in federal court.
People on Twitter were as perplexed and horrified as Sen. Kennedy.
https://twitter.com/skarjune/status/941530010082578432
Leaving aside Trump nominee Matthew Spencer Petersen's lack of qualifications to be a judge, after his hearing, have to wonder, how did he ever pass the bar?
— Janice Hough (@leftcoastbabe) December 15, 2017
This is so cringeworthy to watch and yet I feel zero sympathy for someone with the chutzpah to accept a nomination to the federal bench while lacking the basic knowledge to do the job https://t.co/kwxlNQ3uJg
— Michael A. Cohen (NOT TRUMP’S FORMER FIXER) (@speechboy71) December 15, 2017
https://twitter.com/IvanDCruz1/status/941500059421691904
I've watched a lot of congressional hearings. Never have I seen a nominee so thoroughly shredded by a senator of the president's party. https://t.co/u8GAg8NGn7
— Jonathan Allen (@jonallendc) December 15, 2017
Nobody could sound as ignorant or unqualified as Betsy DeVos did at her Senate hearing.
Hon. Matthew Spencer Petersen: Hold my beer.— Shawn Fitz Thome (@sfitzthome) December 15, 2017
I think somebody ( Matthew Spencer Petersen)needs to go back to law school. Still, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. 👉🏼 Trump Judicial nominee was unable to answer "basic questions of law". #PainfulToWatch https://t.co/iMYn3B3DaU
— Debra French Bloom🌳 (@AmericanWoman_0) December 15, 2017
https://twitter.com/mikewoo84525723/status/941662395596001280
Not sure what the problem is. This guy is as qualified to be a judge as @realDonaldTrump is to be president.
— NMillman 🇨🇦 (@nmillman) December 15, 2017
"I hire the best people folks, the best!"
— McMeddler (@TheMcMeddler) December 15, 2017
I knew some of those answers and my knowledge of law is zilch.
— McMeddler (@TheMcMeddler) December 15, 2017