and 4th circuits, respectively, face longer odds. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.īrett M. McKeague and Michigan state court Judges Richard A.
Sources on both sides said they expected four to win confirmation: U.S. The compromise does not directly deal with seven other appellate court nominations Bush sent to the Senate in February. Myers III, an Idaho lawyer and former U.S. Saad, a judge on the Michigan state appeals court, and William G. And it explicitly notes that participants have not agreed to oppose a filibuster on two others: Henry W. all of whom now are virtually certain to be confirmed. It guarantees up-or-down votes for Owen, California Supreme Court Justice Janice Rogers Brown and former Alabama Atty. The deal establishes conditions for handling only five appellate court nominations. Supporters and critics of the deal were united Tuesday on one point: Its effect will be determined by how it affects future nomination fights. If Bush chooses a different course and picks someone of an ideological stripe like these more controversial appellate court nominees, this agreement. that person is going to get confirmed easily, and then this agreement will hold. “If Bush picks someone for the Supreme Court who is middle-of-the-road. “It totally depends on Bush,” said Ron Klain, who as deputy White House counsel and Justice Department chief of staff helped guide two Supreme Court nominations for President Clinton. With the arrangement in such a precarious balance, the crucial factor governing its survival may be Bush’s reaction to the group’s request that he consult more closely with senators of both parties on his judicial nominations, particularly one for the Supreme Court. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio), another negotiator of the agreement, indicated in interviews Tuesday that they would support banning the judicial filibuster if they believed that Democratic use of the stalling tactic did not meet the “extraordinary circumstances” standard. If the president chooses a polarizing figure for the high court, the seven Democrats would face enormous pressure to support a filibuster - and that would pressure the seven Republicans to reverse direction and back the filibuster ban. “The Supreme Court is probably where this comes to a head,” said Gary Marx, executive director of the Judicial Confirmation Network, a conservative group supporting Bush’s nominees. That could happen as soon as this summer, when many expect ailing Chief Justice William H. The deal, both sides say, will face its greatest strain should a vacancy open on the Supreme Court.
The group brokered a compromise in which seven Republicans agreed to oppose a Senate rule change to end the judicial filibuster and seven Democrats agreed to use the tactic against future nominees only in “extraordinary circumstances.” But the agreement could prove short-lived if future judicial appointments provoke partisan conflicts similar to those that erupted over the current nominees.
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