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Trump Negotiates with Harris and Feinstein on Judge Picks
Since when do Senators get to choose Donald Trump’s nominees for the positions of federal judges? Since now.
In an article on Powerline which references an editorial piece in the Wall Street Journal , Trump has withdrawn three names from his original list of 50 judicial nominees. Imagine the outrage of Kamala Harris and Dianne Feinstein: all of the judges are considered to be conservative. The irony is that these potential judges and their records would otherwise be admired by people from the Left and Right. Patrick Bumatay is an assistant U.S. Attorney who specializes in drug enforcement; he is also a 40-year old gay Filipino American. Daniel Collins has a private law practice, was an associate deputy attorney general and worked on issues like child exploitation. And Kenneth Lee, also in private practice, was an associate counsel to George W. Bush and has a pro bono practice for the poor and incarcerated.
These are the men that Harris and Feinstein have rejected.
But both Senators offered an alternative for selecting nominees for the three open positions:
The Democrats want to pick one name from the White House list, one from their own and a third consensus nominee.
Both articles suggest reasons that President Trump might have agreed to this request. None of the reasons make any sense to me. They appear to be based on a hope and a prayer that the Democrats will be more cooperative toward future judges.
Consulting Senators in the past was done as a courtesy—you know, when Senators were willing to be more cooperative.
This decision bodes a bad future for our judiciary. Do you see something I might be missing that makes this a good strategy?
Published in Politics
Yes AND. It is Graham who must decline to honor the blue slips and stop letting good nominations languish. AND it is McConnell and the whole Senate Republican caucus who must end or modify their 30 hour debate rule. AND it is President Trump who must put steel in their spines by insisting on fulfilling long term promises, especially now that the Republicans can only prove themselves faithful to voters by actions entirely in the power of the Senate.
I am in complete agreement with you Clifford.
Either reduce the 30 hour rule or run the Senate on weekends.
How about working more than three days a week, too!
This can’t be true. No way. If this is true then Trump is messed up. I didn’t feel the US was a lost cause until this. Maybe Ann Coulter can explain things to him.
It’s possible this is all a Dem run-up to the next SCOTUS nomination.
Of course they’ll renege. My thinking is that if this is how he’s going to act — the score is now: no wall, no shutdown, and now liberal judges — let him be impeached quickly and replaced with
Gary NanceMike Pence.Yes, I understood the “weekend” phrase was meant as shorthand for more than the Tuesday — Thursday floor activity schedule.
So it’s not a cave per se, but a simple sewer.
There is a lot I don’t like about Trump, but this would be a great time for Trump to allow his inner-Trump come out, and to push through those nominations.
Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!
Yes, lay down the marker at the State of the Union.
If any of the three nominees wishes to withdraw, might I suggest the nomination of Ricochet’s Law Talk’s John Yoo?
Heads would explode!
And no one got shot. Pretty good.
YES!
Since none of the Senators have to stand for re-election this year, this would not be asking too much, not at all.
Yes! Let him get impeached. Let his fate be decided by the Senate. Then we know who our friends are. If he’s expelled Pence will finish and he too will know who his enemies are.
@susanquinn, Powerline has updated the story and apparently M&F are not getting what they want.
That’s more like it!
I count this among the blessings. Even 10% greater “productivity” could end the republic. No ones property is safe so long as Congress is sitting.
Susan! You too???
The end is nigh!!!
Fumbled this, I did. Appears to be no way to un-flag an erroneous flagging. With apology.
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Thanks, Rodin. It’s unclear what ended up happening and why, but it looks like Trump stayed with two of his nominees and added a third with a good conservative reputation. Here’s a quote from Powerline:
It appears that Bumatay could still be on that path down the road, since he’s nominated for another circuit court. I wish Trump had said no, period, but it’s lots better than it could have been. Be prepared for more shenanigans from the Left.
I also want to add that the WSJ claimed that Trump had removed those three names from the list. So that wasn’t fake news–at least I don’t think it was. I’m just glad he reversed that decision.
As some of you mentioned, they are still working on ways to speed up the approval process. I wish they’d stop talking about it–it’s two years, for pete’s sake–and make the changes. Yes, I know the Dems will use it against us when they are back in power in the Senate. I don’t care.
I wasn’t naming you personally, I was referring to the aggregate number of never-Trumpers out there . . .
As I pretty much expected.
Look, this is the classic art of negotiation, especially with Democrats.
Oh yes – 5. Listen to the press say to caved to all the protests against (1) by your supporters.
As I understand it, when Senator Grassley was in charge of the Judiciary Committee in the Senate, he eventually stopped the Blue Slip. I am not a hundred percent certain, but I have followed this on the Hugh Hewitt Show, and that was my understanding. Now that Lindsay Graham is in charge, I do not know the future of the Blue Slip.
I read about this yesterday someplace else, and they noted that two of the three have already been re-nominated. Bumatay has not, but the writer speculated that he’s holding him for a lower court, to be hopefully groomed for further advancement later. That article (I wish I could remember where I saw it, Instapundit?) was much more rosy than Susan Quinn portrays.
Actually, many of the NeverTrumpers I have spoken to have said that a silver lining to Trump is his appointment of great judges, supported by Cocaine Mitch, and Chuck Grassley and hopefully Lindsey Graham. I don’t know any NeverTrumpers who differ with Trump on Judges. We are with him on Judges.
Good job President Trump on Judges.
Slight revision–he did technically drop one nominee and put him somewhere else. I guess I’m just not devious enough to see through their machinations–not that you’re devious, @seawriter (she says as she slinks away . . . )
It was an update article on Powerline, which originally made it sound pretty bad.