Senate GOP Pushes to Confirm Trump Judges Before Democrats Take Over

3 min read

Senate Republicans are racing against the clock to confirm President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees before Democrats take control of the chamber in January. With the new Congress set to convene, GOP leaders aim to finalize as many as 25 additional federal court appointments, including four appeals court nominees and 21 district court picks. This effort marks a final push for Trump to shape the judiciary during his remaining time in office.

Confirming Judges Amid Political Shift

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has vowed to keep the Senate in session as long as necessary to advance Trump’s nominees, emphasizing the importance of completing the confirmations before the majority changes hands. With Democrats set to control the confirmation process in January, Republicans are determined to fill as many vacancies as possible during their remaining time in power.

“We’re going to make the most of the time that we’ve got,” Thune said, according to the New York Times. The final weeks of Republican control could be Trump’s last opportunity to secure judicial appointments with a GOP majority. If the Senate fails to act now, it may leave many positions unfilled for the rest of his presidency, according to Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), a member of the Judiciary Committee.

Confirmations and Controversies

This week’s schedule included a confirmation vote on Gregory Carl Cook for the Northern District of Alabama, followed by procedural votes advancing Daniel Desmond Domenico for the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals and Anna St. John for the 5th Circuit. Earlier this week, the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced several nominees, including four district court candidates. Three of those nominations cleared the committee on party-line votes, while another received support from some Democrats.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) accused Democrats of preparing to block Trump’s judicial appointments once they take control, claiming that some Democrats “despise President Trump” and are planning to “stonewall” his ability to appoint judges. In response, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, criticized Republicans for cutting corners, including shortened review periods and proceeding with hearings before FBI background checks had been cleared by Senate staff.

Durbin argued that Republicans are “afraid that unqualified MAGA loyalists won’t withstand close scrutiny when Democrats are in the majority.” The dispute has become particularly contentious over two judicial nominees in Texas, where Democrat James Talarico defeated Republican nominee Ken Paxton in the November midterms. Following Talarico’s victory, Trump nominated James Sullivan and Elliot Gaiser for federal district court vacancies in the state.

Democrats accused Republicans of trying to fill the vacancies before Talarico could exercise his traditional home-state senator’s role in reviewing judicial nominees, including the “blue slip” process. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) acknowledged that Gaiser’s nomination had not gone through the usual review process and said he would examine the nominee’s record before deciding whether to support him.

Republicans can confirm judges by a simple majority, but Democrats can force procedural votes that consume floor time, putting pressure on GOP leaders to keep senators in Washington and their caucus united. Trump appointed 234 federal judges during his first term, including three Supreme Court justices who helped establish the court’s current 6-3 conservative majority.

Source: Daily Wire