Litigation

Senate Panel Approves Nominees Again

By Peter Hardin

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted its approval again Thursday for four controversial nominees picked by President Obama for federal judgeships. The action sets the stage for a possible showdown in the weeks before the heated mid-term elections.

Approved along party lines was the nomination of Goodwin Liu, a Berkeley law professor, for the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, according to the Blog of Legal Times. The following nominees for federal district courts also were approved, along largely partisan lines: former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Louis Butler Jr., U.S. Magistrate Judge Edward Chen of California, and lawyer John McConnell Jr. of Rhode Island.

All of the nominees had been approved earlier by the Senate panel, but they did not come up for final votes on the Senate floor, and Republican maneuvering returned the nominations to the White House in August.

Senate Republicans still could choose to filibuster Liu’s nomination. Democrats have used that tactic in the past against some nominees of President George W. Bush, BLT blog reported, and the Republicans’ clout could grow if they gain seats in the November elections.

The Judiciary Committee vote came after a New York Times editorial blasted “An Extreme Judicial Blockade” by Senate Republicans. An alternative view was offered by a Washington Times editorial headlined, “GOP Senate needed to block bad judges.”

To read earlier Gavel Grab posts about Liu, click here; about Judge Chen, click here; about Justice Butler, click here; and about McConnell, click here. You also can read about Obama’s record for nominating judges and winning confirmations by clicking here.

Full post as published by The Gavel on September 23, 2010 (boomark / email).