ConfirmThem

Posted at 9:45pm on May 8, 2008 New Nominee

By AndrewHyman

U.S. District Judge Glen Conrad was nominated today to the Fourth Circuit. There are now two Conrad nominations pending for the Fourth Circuit, the other being that of Judge Robert Conrad.

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Posted at 5:54pm on Mar. 13, 2008 New Fourth Circuit Nominee

By AndrewHyman

G. Steven Agee, of Virginia, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit, vice J. Michael Luttig, resigned. Here's some background from Findlaw.

Hat Tip: Courtwatcher.

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Posted at 1:40pm on Mar. 7, 2008 Couple Friday News Items (and a Clip from Casablanca)

By AndrewHyman

The Washington Times reports today:

Sen. John McCain, in his post-victory debut before the conservative movement's top donors and leaders, will address the Council for National Policy's annual winter meeting here today...."McCain should contrast his approach to Supreme Court appointments with that of Hillary Clinton's and Barack Obama," former House Speaker Newt Gingrich told The Washington Times.

And the Politico had an article on Wednesday titled "Nominations staredown in the Senate". Here's a piece of it:

Asked Tuesday if he was close to a deal to move more nominees, Reid was blunt. “No,” he said. “We’re not close.” Meanwhile, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Republicans are demanding that Democrats push through as many nominees as the GOP did during Bill Clinton’s last year in the White House. The Republican Senate approved 15 Circuit Court nominees in the 1999-2000 session, and the Democratic Congress so far has approved only six.

Six! I can't say I'm "shocked, shocked" that there's partisanship going on here, but the magnitude of it is pretty amazing.

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Posted at 1:43am on Mar. 2, 2008 Quote of the Day

By AndrewHyman

Open hearings with honest debate about qualifications and experience is the way to assess these nominations.

---The Advocate newspaper, Baton Rouge (Feb. 24, 2008).

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Posted at 1:11pm on Feb. 26, 2008 Keeping Up With the Hayneses (and Cornyn and Rosen)

By AndrewHyman

Former Dallas District Court Judge and Fifth Circuit Nominee Catharina Haynes got a hearing last week at the Senate Judiciary Committee. The Blog "How Appealing" has the details. Meanwhile, former Fourth Circuit Nominee Jim Haynes (no relation to the Fifth Circuit nominee) is leaving his position as General Counsel at the Pentagon.

The New York Times reported yesterday that Senator John Cornyn hopes John McCain will emphasize the judges issue in his presidential campaign: "That is one issue that cuts across all aspects of the Republican coalition....I will encourage him to make it a prominent part of his pitch."

And Jeffrey Rosen explains (in the March 12, 2008 issue of the New Republic) one of many good reasons why McCain ought to do exactly what Cornyn suggests: "Once Obama has beaten Clinton, or vice versa, and gone on to the White House, the winner can appoint the loser to the Supreme Court."

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Posted at 10:33pm on Feb. 19, 2008 No Hearings, No Nothing

By AndrewHyman

One year into the 110th Congress, and there have been only six (6) appeals court confirmations. By contrast, fifteen (15) were confirmed during President Clinton’s final two years. The Hill reports:

Sen. Arlen Specter (Pa.), ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee, asked Leahy in a recent letter to move on a number of the nominees. But if that doesn’t generate action, Republicans plan to take a more confrontational approach, such as denying a quorum during business committee meetings of the Judiciary Committee, aides said.

Eight Members of the Judiciary Committee, including at least two Members of the minority, constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting business.

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Posted at 11:46pm on Jan. 28, 2008 State of the Union Address Tonight, Florida Primary Tomorrow

By AndrewHyman

Here's a quote from President Bush's State of the Union Address this evening:

On matters of justice, we must trust in the wisdom of our founders and empower judges who understand that the Constitution means what it says. I've submitted judicial nominees who will rule by the letter of the law, not the whim of the gavel. Many of these nominees are being unfairly delayed. They are worthy of confirmation, and the Senate should give each of them a prompt up-or-down vote....

By trusting the people, our founders wagered that a great and noble nation could be built on the liberty that resides in the hearts of all men and women. By trusting the people, succeeding generations transformed our fragile young democracy into the most powerful nation on Earth and a beacon of hope for millions. And so long as we continue to trust the people, our nation will prosper, our liberty will be secure, and the state of our union will remain strong.

Many of the present judicial vacancies will likely be filled by the next president, who I hope will be Mitt Romney or John McCain (in that order of preference). Which brings us to this amusing statement from Dave Barry:

It's now a dead heat between Mitt Romney and John McCain, both who are running on the platform that the other one is a lying sack of scum. Meanwhile Rudy Giuliani's shrewd strategy of not entering the race until it was way too late continues to pay dividends in the form of several people who have told pollsters that, no matter what, they still plan to vote for Rudy in the Florida primary, even though they personally reside in New Jersey.

Dave Barry's a funny guy.

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Posted at 4:04pm on Jan. 22, 2008 Some Tuesday Notes

By AndrewHyman

Senator Fred Thompson has withdrawn from the presidential race. Here's his statement. The country and the GOP benefited from his campaign; he offered voters a broader choice, contributed to a higher level of debate, and may well have affected the outcome of the election.

Meanwhile, Roe v. Wade is now 35 years older than its victims. President Bush made a statement about it. (Update: Senator McCain made a statement too, though Andy McCarthy has reservations and more reservations about the kind of judges McCain would nominate. Governors Romney and Huckabee have statements here and here about the Roe anniversary.)

Law professor Lori Ringhand is out with a new paper arguing that the Senate should impose a Roe litmus test on nominees. When last we heard from her, she was arguing that the conservative justices are just as “activist” as the liberal justices (see Matt Franck's rebuttal). Her current argument, in favor of Senate hearings that are more inquisitory than they already are, is supported by Ted Kennedy and others.

Hat Tip: How Appealing.

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Posted at 9:21pm on Jan. 19, 2008 Duncans Withdraw

By AndrewHyman

E. Duncan Getchell has asked that his nomination for the Fourth Circuit be withdrawn. And, Duncan Hunter withdrew today from the GOP presidential race.

Speaking of withdrawal, it looks like Senator Fred Thompson did not get a very strong showing of support in the South Carolina primary today, so it will be interesting to see what Senator Thompson's next move will be. He's seen the other candidates up close and personal for months, so an endorsement from Fred would carry a huge amount of weight. He's been a good friend and ally of Senator McCain, but on the other hand Senator Thompson may view Governor Romney as a better presidential pick. Or, Fred may hang on a while longer. Then again, he may withdraw without endorsing anyone. I predict that one of those four things will happen. :-)

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Posted at 11:24am on Oct. 29, 2007 Olson for Senate?!?

By Quin

NRO's The Campaign Spot says that legal superstar Ted Olson, for good reason a favorite of this site, may run for Senate from Virginia. Can you imagine Olson winning and then, dream of dreams, bieng put on the Senate Judiciary Committee? Talk about some intellectual firepower behind the conservative position on judges!

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Posted at 11:49pm on Oct. 11, 2007 Pratter Likely Nominee for 3rd Circuit, While Insurance Company Spares Getchell

By AndrewHyman

According to an article in Law.com, U.S. District Judge Gene E.K. Pratter is the likely nominee for the Third Circuit seat of Judge Franklin S. Van Antwerpen, who has taken senior status. Carolyn Short (formerly General Counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee) would then be nominated for Pratter's district court seat.

Meanwhile, you may have heard allegations recently that Fourth Circuit nominee E. Duncan Getchell made an $8 million clerical mistake in private practice. However, Marc Davis of the The Virginian-Pilot reports:

[T]he insurance company that paid the $8 million does not blame Getchell – yet. For now, the company is suing the trial attorney and his law firm in a legal malpractice case to recover the money....A White House spokesman, Blair C. Jones, noted that the legal malpractice lawsuit does not name Getchell or McGuireWoods as defendants but specifically blames the trial lawyer for not filing the transcript.

That's one unhappy trial lawyer.

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Posted at 10:16pm on Sep. 30, 2007 First Monday in October

By AndrewHyman

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is much in the news this week, due to the release of his new autobiography. Jan Crawford Greenburg has more about Justice Thomas and his book. I've always thought that Thomas exemplifies how a good judge ought to handle the power of judicial review. The late Philip B. Kurland put it this way:

To say that courts could pass on the question of Congressional power is not the same as saying that their discretion is unlimited on this score. The Justices were to measure infringement of the Constitution, not the degree to which their own sensibilities had been violated.

In judicial nomination news, Frank Wooten has an article today in the Post and Courier, titled "Here comes the judge: Give Conrad a fair shot", regarding the Fourth Circuit nomination of Robert Conrad. Also, here's an article about the recent hearing on the nomination of John Tinder for the Seventh Circuit.

No word yet on when the floor votes will occur for Fifth Circuit nominees Leslie H. Southwick and Jennifer W. Elrod, both of whom have cleared committee.

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Posted at 8:56pm on Sep. 24, 2007 Vacancy in the Ocean State

By AndrewHyman

Judge Bruce M. Selya of Rhode Island, who took senior status on the First Circuit ten months ago, has some advice for the Senate, according to the Providence Journal:

This is not a political game. The courts and the country and the state need these judges, and the question ought to be not who makes these nominations but the quality of the nominees....If this president or any future president nominates a first-class person, then that man or woman deserves to be considered on the merits and not held up because someone is waiting for some kind of political accommodation to be made.

Apparent front-runners for Selya's 1st Circuit seat are U.S. Attorney Robert Clark Corrente and District Court Judge William E. Smith.

Meanwhile, in Mississippi, Sid Salter of the Clarion Ledger has an article about Judge Charles Pickering's new book. Salter quotes Charles Evers: "If you are interested in promoting better race relations, you should read Charles Pickering's story."

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Posted at 12:32pm on Sep. 17, 2007 Mukasey for Attorney General

By AndrewHyman

We don't usually say much at this site about non-judicial nominations, but it's worth noting that Judge Michael B. Mukasey has been nominated for Attorney General, and I hope he's speedily confirmed, based on what I know now. Among other things, Judge Mukasey is a top legal advisor to Rudy Giuliani's presidential campaign. So, it might be fair to ask him whether he agrees with Giuliani that sneaking across the border into the United States is "not a crime" and that Congress "didn’t make it a crime".

In reality, 8 USC 1325 says it is a crime. 18 USC 3559 says the first offense is a Class B misdemeanor, and the second offense is a Class E felony. 18 USC 3571 says the criminal penalty can be as much as $5000 for the first offense and $250,000 for the second. I don't understand why anyone would think that a misdemeanor or a felony is not a crime. Maybe it shouldn't be prosecuted in a particular case, and maybe it should, but there ought to be no question that it is a crime, regardless of whether it is usually handled as a mere civil matter.

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Posted at 11:11pm on Aug. 29, 2007 Obama Picks Political Expediency Over Principle on Roberts Nomination

By John Kalinger

Excuse me, but wasn’t Obama supposed to be, as one of his friends puts it in an article in Monday’s Washington Post, “a new kind of politician?” Wasn’t he supposed to unite the country and lead us all into a new era of bi-partisanship in which we all hold hands and sing politically correct songs about diversity and tolerance?

Apparently, not.

According to the article, Obama was actually ready to vote for the nomination of John Roberts until he was disabused of that silly notion by his veteran political consigliere and chief of staff, Pete Rouse. According to the Post, “[Obama] expressed admiration for Roberts's intellect. Besides, Obama said, if he were president he wouldn't want his judicial nominees opposed simply on ideological grounds.”

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Posted at 5:31pm on Jul. 19, 2007 Catching Up on the News

By AndrewHyman

Republicans Weigh Strategy on Southwick Nomination
Jul. 19, 2007
By Keith Perine, CQ Staff

Widener won’t wait
Longest-serving judge steps down; hoped for successor since 2001
LIZ FARMER
Daily Record Legal Affairs Writer
July 18, 2007

Sen. Cochran's busy day
Clearing the Cobwebs
July 19, 2007

Dems grapple with appeals nominee, high court’s future
By Elana Schor and Manu Raju
The Hill
July 19, 2007

N.J. Republican Lawyer Nominated to Fill Alito Seat on 3rd Circuit
Lisa Brennan
New Jersey Law Journal
July 19, 2007

N.C. judge nominated to appeals court
By DOUG ABRAHMS
Gannett News Service
July 18, 2007

Bush chooses former Dallas judge for federal bench
Associated Press
July 17, 2007

Jay Sekulow's Trial Notebook
Fighting for Judges
July 16, 2007

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Posted at 9:04pm on Jul. 9, 2007 Michigan: Three Down, Two To Go

By Curt Levey

The Michigan Three—Janet Neff, Paul Maloney, and Robert Jonker—were confirmed this evening to seats in the Western District of Michigan. Maloney and Jonker were approved by a voice vote. Neff, the controversial Democrat in the package deal, got nay votes from Sens. Brownback (R-KS), Bunning (R-KY), Kyl (R-AZ), and Martinez (R-FL). While they were at it, senators also confirmed Liam O'Grady to the Eastern District of Virginia by a 88-0 vote.

Now that the Michigan Three have been confirmed, it’s time to free the Michigan Two—6th Circuit nominees Raymond Kethledge and Stephen Murphy. Although both were first nominated a year ago, neither has had even a hearing because home state Sens. Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow are withholding their blue slips. Come on Carl, a decade is a bit long to hold a grudge just because cousin-in-law Helene White didn’t get confirmed.

UPDATE: Here's the latest on judicial nominations from Anna Palmer of Legal Times as of July 10, 2007.

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Posted at 7:33pm on Jun. 20, 2007 CFJ Posts Most Recent Press Releases on Its Homepage

By John Kalinger

We have posted our two most recent press releases on our homepage. You may have already seen our press release from yesterday (thanks Andrew) on how the Dems and the usual left-wing groups attack almost every Southern white male Christian judicial nominee, including Judge Southwick, with the same smears time after time.

Today, we posted a new press release on the Left's attempt to impose a racial quota on the federal judiciary by demanding that the seat Judge Southwick is currently nominated for be given to an African-American, preferably an African-American who would be considered a "consensus nominee" by Leahy, Schumer, Neas and Aron. Here's an excerpt from that press release:

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Posted at 9:40am on May 25, 2007 On Vote Fraud

By Quin

This case I wrote about today in the Examiner might be one worth watching. It is worth noting that the other judge who joined Posner, against Evans, in this case was Diane Sykes, so often mentioned here (including by me) as a good choice for the Supreme Court.

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Posted at 11:13pm on May 23, 2007 Fourth Circuit Update

By AndrewHyman

There are fifteen (15) seats on the Fourth Circuit, and there are five (5) vacancies to fill (see here and here). According to the latest news reports, Virginia Senators Webb and Warner are now jointly interviewing potential candidates for at least one of those five seats.

By the way, the Senate Judiciary Committee had an interesting hearing today about giving Washington D.C. a vote in the House of Representatives.

P.S. Here's more about the Southwick and Neff nominations, from How Appealing.

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Posted at 10:31am on May 14, 2007 The Slow Political Establishment

By AndrewHyman

Here's an article about the Selya seat on the 1st Circuit:

Selya, 72, of Providence, said that 14 months ago, when he announced that he’d be assuming senior status on Dec. 31, he “hoped it would give the political establishment time to fill the seat.”

With no successor in sight, Selya has maintained a full caseload. “I enjoy it,” he said. “I’m not complaining, but talk to my wife and you might get a different story.”

Kudos to Judge Bruce Selya.

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Posted at 5:19pm on Apr. 30, 2007 Senators Leery, Patent Attorneys Glum

By AndrewHyman

Roll Call has an article today titled "Senators Leery of Another Supreme Court Fight" by Erin P. Billings. The Roll Call article is subscription only, and starts like this:

Just over a year after confirming President Bush’s second nominee to the Supreme Court, many Senators say they are holding their breath that they won’t have to entertain another high court vacancy this Congress, anticipating a battle royal that likely would bring the narrowly divided chamber to a partisan standstill.

Oh come on, it'll be fun.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has just demolished my profession. Well, maybe it's not quite that momentous. (My boss says that a unanimous SCOTUS decision like this usually means that they didn't really think about it.) Patent attorneys such as myself can at least take our minds off this development by enjoying the first-ever video from the SCOTUS website.

Hat Tip: the great thoughts of Howard Bashman. :-)

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Posted at 3:34pm on Apr. 20, 2007 Alabama SG (and future SCOTUS justice) Kevin Newsom to reenter private practice

By Alexham

My guess is that Mr. Newsom will not be in private practice for long though. He has been mentioned here (and elsewhere) as a rising star among judicial conservatives, and many suspect (including yours truly) that he will be appointed to the Eleventh Circuit when the next vacancy opens up (assuming, of course, that the GOP retains the White House in 2008).

In any event, kudos to Mr. Newsom for all of his excellent work as Alabama's SG, and best of luck to him in all of his future endeavors.

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Posted at 6:58pm on Apr. 9, 2007 O’Connor Complains About Court Critics; Defends Grutter v. Bollinger

By John Kalinger

Last week former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor gave a speech at Southern Methodist Univerity in which she claimed that the reason why people have lost faith in the courts is because of all these folks running around complaining about “activist judges." Two days later O’Connor spoke at a symposium at Washington and Lee honoring Justice Powell where she defended her 2003 decision in Grutter v. Bollinger. Apparently, O'Connor was unaware of the irony created by the juxtaposition of these two speeches.

If O'Connor had attended the rest of symposium she would have heard other panelists discussing the work of UCLA law professor Richard Sander, who has presented some rather convincing evidence that affirmative action programs at the nation’s top law schools actually leads to fewer minorities in the legal profession. Professor Sander's work…

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Posted at 12:07am on Apr. 7, 2007 Giuliani Should Listen to Scalia

By AndrewHyman

In South Carolina this week, Rudolph Giuliani said:

I think abortion is wrong....But ultimately, I think it is a woman’s right, a woman’s choice. And government should not interfere with it by imposing criminal penalties on people....The present state of the law on these issues is not something that I would seek to change.

No, of course not. If a woman is eight months pregnant, and she and her husband decide that they would rather spend their money on vacations to Bermuda instead of on caring for a child, then by all means they should be allowed to rip the unborn child apart limb from limb, and then go on vacation. We’re still waiting for Mr. Giuliani’s views on infanticide.

Meanwhile, speaking in Florida on Wednesday, Antonin Scalia said: "If you want to be governed by an aristocracy, there are better aristocracies than nine lawyers." Giuliani needs to listen to Scalia. Or better yet, listen to the American people: over 70% of women in the United States believe that abortion should generally be illegal in the second trimester. Why does Giuliani want to force on women a right that most women don't believe they should have?

Hat Tip: HJB

UPDATE: Here's some more from National Review about Rudy's position on this. I agree with the National Review editorial, except that they err in characterizing the position of the late President Ford. See here.

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Posted at 9:11am on Apr. 6, 2007 The Legacy of W.

By aurel

Kim Strassel reviews the legacy of President Bush where it concerns judges in the Wall Street Journal. Her conclusion: "Six years in, even the most critical conservative activists are concluding that President Bush has had an impressive judicial run. The base may be disappointed with other aspects of this president and his party, but there's a rock-solid feeling the Texan has lived up to his campaign promises to change the judiciary with distinguished conservative jurist...[Unfortunately, a] few notable senators aside--Mitch McConnell, Jon Kyl, John Cornyn--the reality is that few Republicans have matched Mr. Bush's passion."

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Posted at 10:05pm on Apr. 1, 2007 Couple News Items

By AndrewHyman

First, from the Grand Rapids Press in Michigan, we have an article titled "Senators and judges" urging the Senate to hurry up and confirm Sixth Circuit nominees Kethledge and Murphy, as well as much-needed District Court nominees.

Second, from the Vermont Guardian in the Green Mountain State, we have an article titled "Bush eyes Leahy for Supreme Court appointment" (please let it be an April Fools joke).

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Posted at 5:17pm on Mar. 9, 2007 Second Amendment Resuscitated

By Curt Levey

Turns out the Second Amendment was not deleted from the Bill of Rights after all. Who knew? Certainly not Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Center, who denounced today's landmark DC Circuit ruling – striking down the most restrictive provisions of DC's gun control laws – as "judicial activism at its worst." A quick lesson here for Mr. Helmke: judicial activism occurs when judges create new rights not apparent in the text of the Constitution or statutes, not when judges finally get around to enforcing rights – no matter how politically incorrect – that are explicitly provided for. The best I can say for Mr. Helmke is that he's not alone in trying to misappropriate the language of those who really do care about judicial restraint.

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Posted at 10:29am on Feb. 28, 2007 Vanessa Bryant is Qualified After All

By AndrewHyman

The Hartford Courant has an article today titled, "Opinion Reversed: Judge Is Qualified, Bar Association Raises State Nominee's Rating". According to the article, Bryant would be "the first black woman in New England appointed to a lifetime federal judgeship". Hat Tip: HJB.

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Posted at 1:07pm on Nov. 8, 2006 Rumsfeld Stepping Down, Virginia Senate Seat Still Uncertain

By AndrewHyman

CNN has the story. I hope that Pres. Bush offers the job to Lieberman. Connecticut has a GOP governor. I voted for Lieberman yesterday, but I certainly wouldn't mind if he takes a cabinet job. [Update: Nope, it looks like former CIA Director Robert Gates for SecDef.]

Virginia is now the only state where a Senate result hasn't been announced yet. If there are legitimate doubts, then the GOP should insist on a thorough investigation. There was some extraordinarily nasty behavior in that campaign (e.g. law students attacking Allen supporters so they could claim being beaten, reporters demanding that Allen explain the ethnicity of his grandfather during a debate). If any of the nastiness may have spilled over into the vote-counting, then that ought to be investigated. If not, Allen should concede after a normal recount.

UPDATE #2: Don't expect final results in Virginia until at least Monday, which is the deadline for completion of an automatic statewide canvass. Only then would Allen have to decide whether to request a recount.

UPDATE #3: Both Allen and Burns have conceded.

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