It is Time for the Senate to Stop Stone Walling Nominations

Soundbite: May 9th marks the one-year anniversary of President Bush’s initial nominations to the federal court. Of the first 11 nominations only THREE have been confirmed. It is time for Senators Daschle and Leahy to quit their foot-dragging and politicking and get this nation’s judicial system back on course.

Summary: With our nation our at war and threat of another terrorist attack at home very real, the importance of the institutions of government responsible for administering justice cannot be overstated. Unfortunately for Americans, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and Senator Patrick Leahy (D- Vt.) are stonewalling President Bush’s judicial nominations. Under the stewardship of Chairman Patrick Leahy, the Senate Judiciary Committee has prevented Federal judicial nominees from even receiving a hearing. For instance, after nearly a year in office, the Senate has confirmed only 14% of President Bush’s judicial nominees to the Circuit courts. At this time, there are nearly 90 open judicial seats that still need qualified judges for the federal judiciary – leaving some courts in a crisis situation. The importance of quick confirmation of judicial nominees cannot be overstated. The United States must have a fully staffed judiciary able to adjudicate the difficult legal issues that the nation faces and to address the normal day-to-day judicial caseload. President Bush has taken the first step to alleviate this burden; unfortunately, the Senate has chosen obstruction and decided to let politics stand in the way of our nation’s interests.

The fight against the war on terrorism will require valuable resources and time. In addition to our nation’s judicial branch, the DoJ and its agencies have a vital role to play to restore confidence, punish wrongdoers, and protect the borders from those who wish us harm. But to do so effectively, it needs to be fully staffed. It’s time for the Department of Justice and Congress to focus their attention on the confirmation of judicial nominees.

Call to Action:

Call or email immediately to Senator Leahy’s office or to Senator Daschle. Tell them the following:

  • We are in the process of a judicial meltdown and Senators Leahy and Daschle need to start addressing this crisis by moving on President Bush’s judicial nominations
  • Both the judicial nominations and the confirmation process for national security personnel have ground to a halt so that these few Senators can play partisan politics.
  • When President Bush took office there were 82 vacancies; right now there are even more. Under the leadership of Chairman Leahy, the federal judiciary is actually SHRINKING, despite a record pace of nominations by the President.

    Sign CSE’s petition on the need for quick confirmation of President Bush’s nominee, Miguel Estrada.

    CSE’S GOAL

    Senate Needs to Confirm President Bush’s Judicial Nominees

    Even Chief Justice William Rehnquist realizes the toll of Senator Leahy’s actions and recently stated that the judicial system is currently woefully short of adequate judges to fill vacancies on the federal bench. He asked the Senate to stop its obstructionist behavior and at least give hearings to those that have been nominated months ago.