The candidate for a prominent Justice Department position has left behind a digital footprint of erased social media posts that his opponents argue indicate extremist views on various subjects, including a willingness to defy judicial orders and an acceptance of arranged marriages under specific conditions.
In one verified deleted post reported by CBS News, Aaron Reitz, nominated by President Trump to head the department’s Office of Legal Policy, commented on a ruling from U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel in March 2020 that temporarily prevented Texas from closing an abortion clinic during the COVID pandemic.
“Judge Yeakel has made his decision,” Reitz wrote on the social media platform X. “Now let him enforce it.”
In another deleted post, he appeared to nostalgically endorse anti-communist figure Joseph McCarthy. Accompanying a photo of McCarthy, Reitz wrote, “Bring back the good ‘ol days.”
Reitz has chosen not to comment.
Senators on the Judiciary Committee are set to vote on Thursday regarding the advancement of his nomination for the role of assistant attorney general in charge of the Office of Legal Policy, which is a significant yet discreet position within the Justice Department.
Currently, Reitz serves as the chief of staff for Texas GOP Senator Ted Cruz and previously held the role of deputy attorney general in Texas, overseeing a barrage of over 20 lawsuits against the previous administration’s policies, placing a strong focus on immigration and border issues. In his announcement of Reitz’s nomination on Truth Social, Trump lauded him as a dedicated MAGA attorney and a “warrior for our Constitution.”
The Office of Legal Policy provides guidance to the attorney general on critical issues relating to policy and law, collaborates closely with Congress to develop legislation, and plays a key role in selecting and vetting federal judges. Its approximately two dozen attorneys typically work in relative obscurity, largely staying out of the political fray.
Reitz is a graduate of the University of Texas Law School, where he served as editor-in-chief of the law review. He clerked for a conservative Texas Supreme Court member before joining Bracewell LLP, a prestigious law firm in Houston that once featured former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani as a name partner. He is affiliated with the Federalist Society and has also completed a five-year combat tour in Helmand Province during the Afghan war.
On social media, Reitz has long been a vigorous proponent of conservative perspectives and a dedicated supporter of the MAGA movement.
“Friendly reminder that ‘birthright citizenship’ is not a thing,” he tweeted in 2021. He has also advocated for the reversal of reforms to mandatory minimum sentences, posting, “make mandatory minimums great again.” Additionally, he has criticized the federal right to access abortion, asserting that “roe’s finding that there’s a constitutional right to abortion is garbage.” The Supreme Court ultimately overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, leaving abortion legality up to the states.
However, Reitz’s social media commentary has occasionally delved into more controversial territory, drawing the attention of Democrats in Congress during his confirmation process.
Among his remarks are implications that it could be acceptable to defy a court order under certain conditions. During his confirmation hearing last month, Democrats confronted him over what they interpreted as his online provocation towards Judge Yeakel regarding his abortion ruling, challenging him to “enforce it.”
In response to questions about the post during his hearing, Reitz stated, “There is no hard and fast rule in all instances in which a litigant must comply with all or some or various parts of a judicial decision. It is so fact-law- and case-specific that one cannot speak generally.”
Some of Reitz’s more extreme social media statements have escaped scrutiny until recently. A review of hundreds of his posts over the last few years unveils incendiary opinions on a variety of social, legal, and political matters. Prior to his confirmation, he deleted at least 4,000 tweets from his X account, although it is uncertain when this cleanup occurred. The tweets encompass a range of contentious subjects, from abortion to the murder of George Floyd and misleading assertions about the 2020 election.
One of Reitz’s posts expressed a willingness to consider arranged marriages.
“The more one realizes that marriage is more of a public institution than a private one, the more ‘arranged’ marriages (rightly understood and coupled with some limited/guiding principles) makes a lot of sense,” he wrote.
Furthermore, in September 2020, Reitz seemed to advocate for the revisionist portrayal of McCarthy, the American figure notorious for launching a ruthless campaign to identify and blacklist suspected communists, whose name became synonymous with political witch hunts.
A spokesman for the White House, Harrison Fields, stated, “Aaron Reitz is an eminently-qualified nominee, who will join our incredible Attorney General Pam Bondi to ensure the Department of Justice delivers for the American people.”
Senator Cruz’s office has not responded to a request for comment.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on Thursday, and Reitz is anticipated to be approved along party lines.
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