Roll Call Reports on Federal Bench Nominations
Roll Call reports on nominations to the federal bench:
The Senate is unlikely to take on any new court battles this year, and it doesn’t appear that there is any particular nominee outstanding who would spark an immediate showdown.
The first year of the 110th Congress has moved relatively smoothly for Bush’s court nominees. Bush started out the year by withdrawing a series of his most controversial picks, and the bulk of this year’s selections have advanced uneventfully through the Senate.
Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) said that he believes the “window is closing” for Bush to move controversial nominations through the Senate, and with that in mind, it’s likely that both parties will be looking to coalesce around mutually agreeable court picks — unless an opening arises on the Supreme Court, an unlikely scenario that would assuredly shut down the Senate, he said.
“The desire for a fight may not be as strong right now,” said Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.). “First, they’ve been through this before and they are tired of it. Also, with a year left, is it really worth a big brouhaha over a federal judge?”