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Starting Monday, July 12, 2009, we will be covering the hearings regarding the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court.
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Justice Delayed is Justice Denied
On July 14, the Senate Republican Conference held a forum entitled, "Protecting American Justice: Ensuring Confirmation of Qualified Judicial Nominees." The forum was chaired by Senator Arlen Specter, who was joined by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Minority Whip John Kyl, Chairman of the Republican Conference Lamar Alexander, Senator Elizabeth Dole, Senator Wayne Allard, Senator John Cornyn, and Senator Chuck Grassley.
Following opening remarks from each Senator, four witnesses testified as to the current state of the judiciary due to the refusal of the Democratic leadership to hold hearings or votes on judicial nominees. Both the Senators and witnesses drew attention to the fact that three nominees, in particular, have been waiting for a hearing for an inexcusable amount of time. Robert Conrad and Steve Matthews, both nominated to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, have been waiting 365 days and 315 days respectively. Peter Keisler, nominated to the District Court for the District of Columbia, has been waiting 750 days.
A Republican Senate confirmed 15 circuit court judges during the final two years of President Clinton's last term in office. The current Democratic Congress has confirmed only 10 of President Bush's circuit court nominees. Currently, over 25% of the seats in the Fourth Circuit are vacant, and as such, the Circuit is in a state of judicial emergency. Despite this alarming statistic and the fact that justice is not being served, the Democratic leadership is still refusing to hold hearings and votes on circuit court nominees.
In an effort to reiterate that judicial confirmations are a priority, the Republican members of the Judiciary Committee boycotted yesterday's hearing because there were no judicial confirmations on the agenda. Throughout the day this issue was highlighted as Minority Leader McConnell, Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee Specter, and several other Republican Senators either spoke or participated in a colloquy on the floor of the Senate.
The lack of hearings and votes on qualified judicial nominees is rooted in partisan politics. As Minority Leader McConnell said, “It’s the American people, especially those in the five states that make up the Fourth Circuit, who are suffering the consequences. And I’m sorry the Majority Leader doesn't think that matters.”
All Talk And No Action By Senate Democratic Leadership
On April 15, 2008, Senate Majority Leader Reid committed to Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that the Senate would vote on the confirmation of three circuit court nominees before Memorial Day. Of the committment, Senator McConnell said, "Because of the Majority Leader's good faith commitment, I'm confident that we'll have these three additional nominees confirmed by Memorial Day."
Over one month later, the Democratic leadership in the Senate finally took the first step in honoring their committment to the Republicans. On May 20, the Senate voted 96-0 to confirm Justice G. Steven Agee to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. This was the only circuit court nominee confirmed before the Memorial Day recess, which started on May 26.
June 4, Minority Leader McConnell said, “The Majority said it would do its ‘utmost,’ said it would do ‘everything’ possible, said it would do ‘everything within its power’ to confirm three more circuit court nominees by the Memorial Day recess; yet it only confirmed one nominee. Moreover, it appears the Majority did not seriously attempt to honor its commitment. Indeed, since that deadline passed almost two weeks ago, the Democratic Majority has still failed to confirm more circuit court nominees. The Democratic Majority has refused to honor its commitments. It apparently believes that commitments do not matter in the United States Senate, and that actions do not have consequences."
The start of the consequences mentioned by McConnell began the same day. As a means of protesting the unfair treatment of judges nominated by President Bush, Minority Leader McConnell used a parliamentary tactic to effectively shut down the Senate floor. When an amendment to a bill is introduced, it is a parliamentary requirement that the clerk begin to read the text of the amendment. Typically, after the clerk begins to the read the measure, the Senator introducing the amendment requests that further reading of the text be dispensed with, and such request rarely faces objection. On June 4, when Majority Leader Reid offered a substitute to a climate change bill, McConnell objected to his request to dispense with the reading. The substitute offered was 491 pages, the reading of which, in essence, shut down the Senate floor.
In the past two years, the Senate has confirmed seven nominees to the Court of Appeals; however, sixteen such nominees were confirmed during President Bill Clinton's final two years in office. It appears unlikely that Democratic senators will match that number.
Contact the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee and ask them to hold hearings on judges nominated by President Bush. A complete list of members can be found at
http://judiciary.senate.gov/members.cfm.
Before taking office, each United States Senator took the following oath: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States..." Article 2, Section 2 of the United States Constitution states that the President has the power to appoint judges with advice and consent of the Senate. Contact your Senators and ask them to uphold their oath and hold votes on judicial nominees. A complete list of Senators can be found at
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm.
Senate Republicans Take A Stand Against Obstruction Of Judicial Nominees
Yesterday, seven Senate Republicans went to the floor to denounce the obstruction of judicial nominees. In the last two years of the Clinton administration, the Republican controlled Senate confirmed 15 appellate court nominees compared to only six Bush nominees that have been confirmed during this Democratic controlled Senate. As Senator Hatch said, "The Constitution gives to the president authority to nominate and appoint federal judges. The Senate provides advice about whether the president should appoint his judicial nominees by giving or withholding consent through up or down votes. That is what the Constitution assigns us to do. That is what Americans expect the Senate to do. That is what the Senate is failing to do."
Here are some excerpts from yesterday's floor speeches:
Senator Mitch McConnell(KY- Senate Minority Leader):
“The Judiciary Committee has held only one hearing on one circuit court nominee since last September. … It’s not as if the Committee has been otherwise occupied. This is another week in which the Committee could have held a hearing, for example, on the qualified nominees to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, but it again chose not to do so. These nominees meet the Chairman’s own criteria for prompt consideration. Nevertheless, they have been inexplicably languishing in the Committee for hundreds of days without a hearing while the Fourth Circuit is one-third vacant.”
Senator Arlen Specter(PA- Judiciary Committee Ranking Member):
“There is a growing movement in the Republican caucus to hold up legislation if we cannot move in any other way to get justice on the confirmation of these judges.”
Senator John Cornyn(TX):
“This immediate need for judicial confirmations is especially true for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. … The Fourth Circuit is currently operating without a third of its judges. The Washington Post observed that ‘the Senate should act in good faith to fill vacancies – not as a favor to the president but out of respect for the residents, businesses, defendants and victims of crime in the region the 4th Circuit covers.’”
Senator Orrin Hatch(UT):
“The majority has stalled judicial confirmation votes longer this year than in any presidential election year since 1848. … The last time the Senate waited this long in a presidential election year to confirm federal judges, James Polk, the 11th President, was in the White House.”
Senator Sam Brownback(KS):
“I think you're going to see people start to jam the body down and say that, unless we start approving some circuit court judges, business isn't going to happen around here. It may come to a complete standstill if we don't start getting some judges. … The majority party can choose to go that route. … We are really going to have a big debate then across the country on that. Meanwhile, the whole nation just wants us to get the work done and we're not getting it done because judges aren't being approved.”
Senator Tom Coburn(OK):
“The Chairman’s unwillingness to even hold hearings on numerous judicial nominees is a gross dereliction of duty. It is disappointing that the committee is putting election year partisan politics ahead of its constitutional duty to give ‘advice and consent’ to the president’s judicial nominees.”
Senator Jon Kyl(AZ):
“The judicial conference says that many of these [vacancies] are judicial emergencies, meaning that we have vacancies in the circuit that need to be filled because there aren't enough judges to do the people's business. I mean, we should do it because we should do it; it's our responsibility. But even if you only look at it from a political standpoint, the reality is that if this tradition is broken of 15, 16, 17 judges in the last two years of an administration, then, clearly, we're going to devolve into a situation where, for political purposes, the party in power decides not to … even having votes on the nominees of the President. And that is a very, very bad thing.
Support a Pro-life Judicial Nominee
Richard Honaker, who has been a member of the Board of Directors of Home School Legal Defense Association for over 15 years, has been nominated to the federal district court in Wyoming. Although he is extremely qualified for this position, he is being attacked because of his strong pro-life stance.
He graduated cum laude from Harvard University and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Wyoming College of Law. He served as Assistant Attorney General and a Public Defender for the State of Wyoming, was president of the Wyoming Trial Lawyers Association and the State Bar, was elected to serve for three terms in the Wyoming House of Representatives and serves as an adjunct professor at Western Wyoming Community College.
As state Representative in 1991, he introduced the Human Life Protection Act. The bill banned abortion, except to protect the life of the woman, and in cases of rape or incest. Stating support for the bill, Mr. Honaker said, "Unborn children are human beings, and abortion is the taking of the life of an unborn child who is a member of the human race."
The pro-abortion, National Organization for Women said, "Honaker is a staunch anti-choice advocate who has not only repeatedly stated his view that legal abortion is the equivalent of murder, but has spent significant portions of his career fighting to deny women access to safe, legal reproductive-health services."
The railroading of pro-life judicial nominees must come to an end. Pressure must be put on the Senate, especially members of the Senate Judiciary Committee to confirm strong pro-life judges. Please call your Senators and let them know that you support Richard Honaker as a nominee to the federal district court in Wyoming.
A list of United States Senators can be found at: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm.
A list of the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee can be found at:http://judiciary.senate.gov/members.cfm
The President's Call for Judicial Confirmations
On January 28, 2008, President Bush spoke to the nation during his final State of the Union Address. Regarding the important matter of judicial confirmations he said, "On matters of justice, we must trust in the wisdom of our Founders and empower judges who understand that the Constitution means what it says. I have submitted judicial nominees who will rule by the letter of the law, not the whim of the gavel. Many of these nominees are being unfairly delayed. They are worthy of confirmation, and the Senate should give each of them a prompt up-or-down vote."
As the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist said, "The federal courts have functioned through wars, natural disasters, and terrorist attacks...To continue functioning effectively and efficiently, however, the courts must be appropriately staffed. This means that necessary judgeships must be created and judicial vacancies must be timely filled with well-qualified candidates."
Hold the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee accountable and ask them to hold hearings on the President's judicial nominees. A complete list of the committee members can be found at http://judiciary.senate.gov/members.cfm.
U.S. Supreme Court Allows Decision To Stand
Public Schools May Not Censor Religious Viewpoints Of Students In Class Assignments
While on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that schools may not censor religious viewpoints of students when they address permissible subjects in response to class assignments or instruction.On April 24, 2006,the U.S. Supreme Court allowed a ruling by a federal court of appeals to stand that declared public schools cannot censor the religious viewpoints of students in class assignments. The case, Baldwinsville School District v. Peck, involved a school district's censorship of a kindergartner's art poster that contained a picture of Jesus. Liberty Counsel represents Antonio Peck, the student whose poster was censored.
When attending kindergarten at Baldwinsville Elementary School in Syracuse, New York, Antonio's teacher instructed the class to draw posters regarding their understanding of the environment. Antonio drew a poster depicting children holding hands circling the globe, people picking up garbage and recycling trash. The left side depicted Jesus with one knee to the ground and two hands stretched toward the sky, although Jesus was not named. This poster was displayed for half a day on the cafeteria wall, along with 80 other student posters, during an event where parents were invited to view their children's artwork. But unlike the other kindergarten posters, school officials folded Antonio's poster in half in order to censor Jesus. School officials said the poster violated "church and state" and would give the impression that the school was teaching religion, even though the poster was clearly a kindergartner's artwork. Folding the poster made it look odd. Antonio's name at the bottom was cut in half. When he saw his poster folded, Antonio felt ashamed in front of his classmates and his parents, because school officials told him and his parents why his poster was folded. He then assumed he did something wrong and was being punished. When school officials refused to remedy the matter, apologize or adopt a policy to prevent future censorship, Liberty Counsel filed suit.
On October 18, 2005, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 3-0 in favor of Antonio. The Second Circuit joined the Ninth and the Eleventh Circuits in holding that public schools may not censor a student's viewpoint on a permissible subject matter when it is responsive to a school assignment or program. The First and Tenth circuits hold that viewpoint discrimination in the curricular context may be permissible. The school district then asked the Supreme Court to hear the case.
