Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans voted on Thursday to advance the nomination of Emil Bove, President Donald Trump’s former personal attorney, to a federal judgeship, over the loud protests of Democrats.

The vote — in which all 12 Republican committee members voted to move Bove’s nomination forward — occurred as Democratic Sen. Cory Booker railed against committee chair GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley and as every Democratic senator walked out.

If he is ultimately confirmed by the Senate, Bove, a senior Justice Department official, will hold a lifetime appointment to the bench for the 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals.

“I have respect for you Mr. Chairman, but this is outrageous, this is unacceptable, this is wrong,” Booker, of New Jersey, said at the meeting as his Republican colleagues proceeded with the vote to advance Bove’s nomination. “This is an abuse of power. It is an undermining of the wellbeing and the integrity of this Senate.”

In the weeks since Trump first announced Bove’s nomination, the president’s former attorney has come under fire from Democrats for some of his more controversial decisions at the DOJ, including mass firings within the Justice Department, threats against officials who resist Trump’s immigration agenda, a campaign to drop corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, and investigations into officials who worked on cases related to the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.