Obama nominates first Muslim-American to bench of federal court
President Barack Obama on Tuesday nominated Washington lawyer Abid Riaz Qureshi to the United States District Court for Washington, D.C., making Qureshi the first Muslim-American to be nominated to the bench of a federal court.
“I am confident he will serve the American people with integrity and a steadfast commitment to justice," Obama said in a statement.
Qureshi is a lawyer and partner at Latham & Watkins' LLP, where he specializes in anything concerning the False Claims Act, federal securities, and healthcare fraud, according to his brief biography on the firm's website.
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Qureshi, who got his law degree from Harvard Law School, has also been a Legal Ethics Committee member of the District of Columbia Bar Association since 2015.
“The nomination of Abid Qureshi to fill a seat on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia sends a message of inclusion that is welcomed by the American Muslim community and by all Americans who value diversity and mutual respect,” the Council on American-Islamic Relations National Executive Director Nihad Awad said in a statement posted on Facebook.
Whether Quershi makes it to the bench is still an open question, given that Obama's term as president ends in a matter of months. Senate Republicans have for months refused to confirm Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court, Judge Merrick Garland.
Should Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump win the White House, Quershi seems unlikely to be renominated. He could more realistically, however, be nominated again by Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.
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Topics Barack Obama
Colin is Mashable's US & World Reporter. He previously interned at Foreign Policy magazine and The American Prospect. Colin is a graduate from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. When he's not at Mashable, you can most likely find him eating or playing some kind of sport.
