‘Judicial Appointments Are The Sleeper Story That Matters’

‘Senate Republicans Close In On Record For Judicial Confirmations’ 

SEN. MCCONNELL: ‘Under Chairman Grassley’s Leadership, The Senate Judiciary Committee Has Done Outstanding Work’

SEN. MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): “Under Chairman Grassley’s leadership, the Senate Judiciary Committee has done outstanding work to move these judicial nominees to the floor. I am grateful for his efforts…”  (Sen. McConnell, Floor Remarks, 12/14/2017)

“President Trump and Senate Republicans are closing in on the record for the most federal appeals court judges confirmed during a president's first year in office.” (“Trump, Senate Republicans Close In On Record For Judicial Confirmations,” Washington Examiner, 12/12/2017)

“Senate Republicans are set to confirm three more of President Donald Trump’s appeals court picks this week, a push that will help set a record for the most such appointments in a president’s first year in office. The Senate is expected to confirm Steve Grasz for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit, and James Ho and Don Willett for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit… That would mean at least a dozen Trump appointees would join the nation’s appeals courts — which have the last word in all but the 100 or so cases that the Supreme Court decides each year — in his first year in the White House. That comes in a year the Senate also confirmed Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch in April.” (“Trump Poised To Set Record For Appeals Court Judges,” Roll Call, 12/12/2017)

• “If Senate Republicans confirm Ho and Willett before Jan. 20, Trump would surpass the record held by former presidents John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. Both Kennedy and Nixon confirmed 11 federal appeals court nominees during their first year in office, according to the Federal Judicial Center.” (“Trump, Senate Republicans Close In On Record For Judicial Confirmations,” Washington Examiner, 12/12/2017)

• “Compare that to Barack Obama, who successfully appointed three appeals court judges in his first year in office in 2009, as well as Justice Sonia Sotomayor.” (“Trump Poised To Set Record For Appeals Court Judges,” Roll Call, 12/12/2017)

President Trump ‘Is Rapidly Remaking The Federal Appellate And District Courts, With Highly Qualified Nominees’

WALL STREET JOURNAL: “Mr. Trump has nominated first-rate judges…” (Editorial, “Running The Schumer Blockade,” The Wall Street Journal, 7/10/2017)

• WSJ: “… President Trump is rapidly remaking the federal appellate and district courts, with highly qualified nominees who fulfill his campaign promise to pick ‘constitutional conservatives.’” (“Trump’s Excellent Judges,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/1/2017)

PRESIDENT TRUMP: “Thanks to @SenateMajLdr McConnell and the @SenateGOP we are appointing high-quality Federal District ...and Appeals Court Judges at a record clip! Our courts are rapidly changing for the better!” (@realDonaldTrump, Twitter, 11/1/2017)

• PRESIDENT TRUMP: “…something that people aren't talking about is how many judges we've had approved, whether it be the Court of Appeals, circuit judges, whether it be district judges. We have [a] tremendous [number], right now, under review. … I think it's one of the big unsung things of this administration… Many, many are in the pipeline. The level of quality is extraordinary.” (President Trump, Press Conference, 10/16/2017)

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): “As you've noticed, as soon as the circuit judge comes out of committee, I call 'em up. I'm in charge of the schedule. I gotta choose what to bring up. Confirmation of circuit court judges is my top priority. As they come outta the committee they will be called up.” (Hugh Hewitt Show, 11/4/2017)

AMANDA MARCOTTE, Liberal: “…Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Sen. Chuck Grassley, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, have set up a factory-style assembly line for Trump's judicial nominees, and are getting them confirmed at a dizzyingly fast rate. … If liberals sometimes overlook the importance of the courts, rest assured that conservatives do not.” (“Mitch McConnell Powers Up A Production Line For Trump’s Right-Wing Judges,” Salon, 11/8/2017)

PLANNED PARENTHOOD: “If Gorsuch is any indication of the types of judges Trump is tapping for lifetime appointments, we’re in trouble.” (Twitter, @PPact, 10/21/17)

 ‘Democrats And Liberal Groups Have Been Unable To Stop Any Of Trump’s Nominees’

BUZZFEED: “…Democrats and liberal groups have been unable to stop any of Trump’s nominees from being confirmed by the Republican-controlled Senate.” (“Republicans Want To Change The Rules To Let Trump Reshape The Judiciary ASAP,” BuzzFeed, 11/1/2017)

• “Democrats can’t do much to stop McConnell from pushing judges through.” (“The Senate Is About To Confirm A Frenzy Of Conservative Judges,” Huffington Post, 10/30/2017)

• “Democratic senators have used every parliamentary trick in their power to slow this particular Trump train. … Democrats are forcing more cloture votes than any early presidency and demanding the full 30 hours of floor time per nominee that Senate rules allow.” (“It’s Time For GOP Leadership To Stop Letting Democrats Stall Judicial Nominations,” The Federalist, 10/19/2017)

SEN. DICK DURBIN (D-IL): “Senator McConnell controls the floor schedule. If he wants to schedule more votes on judges, I suppose he has the power to do so. He is exercising that power by doing something that has never happened in the history of the Senate.” (Sen. Durbin, Congressional Record, S.6886, 10/31/2017)

“‘I think it's awful fast to move,’ Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, told Politico.” (“McConnell Is Setting The Stage For Rapid-Fire Confirmation Of Trump's Judicial Nominees,” Business Insider, 10/26/2017)

“Nan Aron, president of the progressive Alliance for Justice, said the rush to confirm the circuit court judges is the ‘Trump-GOP court takeover strategy in all its glory.’” (“McConnell Picks Up Pace On Trump’s Judges, Moves To Confirm Four Next Week,” The Washington Times, 10/26/2017)

PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY: “The survival of our democracy depends on having independent courts with judges who protect everyone’s rights and who won’t let anyone trample on the Constitution. So it’s no surprise that Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell are moving at light speed to transform our federal judiciary … this situation isn’t funny. He and Trump are quickly transforming the American judiciary…” (PFAW, Press Release, 10/30/2017)