Indian-American Woman Named to Prestigious Judgeship
New York: US President Donald Trump has announced that he is nominating an Indian-American woman, Neomi Rao, to the senior judgeship that was vacated by Brett Kavanaugh when he was elevated to the Supreme Court. Flanked by a phalanx of about 20 top Indian-American officials in his administration, Donald Trump said at the annual White House Diwali celebrations on Tuesday that Rao was his pick for the District of Columbia Court of Appeals judgeship. She is a “great person” who “is going to be fantastic”, he said.
Considered the most important court below the Supreme Court, serving on it is considered to open a path to the nation’s top court as four of the nine current justices had risen from its bench. Of the 13 courts of appeal, the one in the District of Columbia is regarded as the most important as it is based in the nation’s capital and weighty federal litigation ends up before it.
Trump said that Rao’s announcement was scheduled for Wednesday, but that he decided to do it a day early because the celebration was an appropriate venue. The Senate will have to approve her appointment. As a woman and a minority, her appointment carries a lot of symbolism after the messy elevation of Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court after at least two women accused him of sex abuse. For Trump, who has been accused of being personally abusive towards women and of insensitivity to them and to minorities, Rao’s nomination could ensure smoother sailing for his nominee in the Senate, although as a conservative she will face an ideological inquisition at the hands of the Democrats. Rao comes from a Parsi family and her parents, both doctors, immigrated from India. Trump praised the Indian-Americans in his administration, saying: “I’m grateful to have numerous Americans of Indian and Southeast Asian heritage who fulfil critical roles across my administration. And they’ve done an incredible job.” (IANS)
