Senate Dems begin their final effort until at least 2029 to put judges on the courts

Seventeen of Biden's judicial nominees are awaiting a vote of the full Senate, with seven more expected to be on the floor by Thanksgiving.

In the coming weeks, Democrats will have their last chance to put Democratic nominees on the federal courts until at least 2029.

With Republicans taking Senate control on January 3 when the new Congress begins and Donald Trump retaking the presidency on January 20, this is a make-or-break moment for Democrats.

Given Republican control of the House, there will be no last-minute legislating being sought, so Democrats in the lame-duck Senate session are expected to be devoted to confirming judges, as well as any other key appointees whose terms would last beyond President Joe Biden’s time in office.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has said in a statement that they will “get as many done as we can.“ With more than 200 of Biden’s judicial nominees already confirmed, this has been a priority for Schumer — so there’s no reason to believe he won’t work to do all that he can in the coming weeks.

To that end, Sen. Elizabeth Warren gave a little nudge to her colleagues last week, writing that Democrats must use “every minute of the end-of-year legislative session to confirm federal judges and key regulators—none of whom can be removed by the next President.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee appears to be ready to do their part.

“Senate Democrats are in a strong position regarding judicial confirmations as we approach the lame duck session given that we have a number of nominees on the floor ready for a vote, and others still moving through Committee,” Josh Sorbe, spokesperson for Committee Chair Dick Durbin, told Law Dork. “Chair Durbin aims to confirm every possible nominee before the end of this Congress.”

Currently, and as I covered previously, there are four appellate nominees awaiting a vote of the full Senate and one awaiting committee action. The four nominees awaiting a floor vote are Karla Campbell (Sixth Circuit), Embry Kidd (Eleventh Circuit), Julia Lipez (First Circuit), Adeel Mangi (Third Circuit), and the nominee in committee is Ryan Park (Fourth Circuit).

Due to some Democratic opposition, which I discussed twice previously here at Law Dork, Mangi is unlikely to be confirmed unless something has changed.

A related question for the lame-duck session is whether any departing senators — especially Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema — will prevent confirmation of any other nominees.

In addition to the appellate nominees, there are 13 district court nominees awaiting a vote of the full Senate, meanwhile, with 10 more in committee and three more announced.¹

A source familiar with Democrats’ plans tells Law Dork that Park and six of the district court nominees in committee are expected to be sent to the floor before Thanksgiving.

It was not clear whether Biden will be nominating anyone to the one other pending appellate vacancy in the Third Circuit or for any of the other 38 current or announced forthcoming district court vacancies across the nation.

Whatever the White House and Senate Democrats’ judicial plans are, they will begin in earnest on Tuesday when the Senate reconvenes.

At 5:30 p.m., the Senate is set to vote on the nomination of April Perry to be a federal judge for the Northern District of Illinois. Perry is nominated to take the seat formerly occupied by Judge Nancy Maldonado — who was confirmed to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in July.

Before the Senate recessed in September, cloture also was filed on another Illinois nominee, Jonathan Hawley, who Biden nominated to the Central District of Illinois, setting that nomination up for a vote as early as Wednesday.

At that time, cloture was filed on three nominees. In addition to Hawley and a tax court judicial nominee, the third nominee is David Huitema, nominated to be the director of the Office of Government Ethics.

The former head of the OGE at the start of Trump’s first administration, Walter Shaub Jr., regularly clashed with Trump and members of his administration before resigning in July 2017.

In his April confirmation hearing, Huitema told the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs in his opening statement that “OGE’s mission has never been more critical, as its work forms one part of a broader struggle against the growing cynicism and distrust that can undermine our democratic self-government.”

1. This number was updated to reflect a nomination announced by the White House on Friday, November 8.