Democratic President Joe Biden is poised to nominate a conservative anti-abortion lawyer to a federal judgeship in Kentucky, according to Gov. Andy Beshear.
The Louisville Courier-Journal first reported the possible nomination of Chad Meredith to a lifetime judgeship in the eastern Kentucky district. Meredith worked for former Gov. Matt Bevin and Attorney General Daniel Cameron. He is also a member of the Federalist Society.
During a news conference on Thursday, Beshear called Meredith “an individual who aided and advised on the most egregious abuse of power by a governor in my lifetime.”
“What my understanding right now is it has not been submitted, which I hope means in the very least, it's on pause. If the president makes that nomination, it is indefensible,” Beshear said.
Beshear said Meredith should be disqualified from the position for his role working on controversial pardons at the end of Bevin’s administration, including clemency extended to convicted murders and rapists.
“If you are a lawyer that advised on that and went along with it, you should be disqualified from serving in a role where you would hand out sentences,” Beshear said. “I mean, these are individuals who were pardoned who are walking free today, despite committing terrible violent crimes. Seeing this, I don't know how the president could say he's for public safety.”
Democratic Congressman John Yarmuth told the Courier-Journal that Meredith’s nomination is part of a deal with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. He said the exchange would ensure that McConnell would not block federal nominations by the Biden White House.
McConnell and Yarmuth did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
