WASHINGTON (AP) — Demand Justice, a progressive organization focused on the judiciary, will bombard Capitol Hill with a message for the final weeks of the 118th Congress: Do ‘whatever it takes’ to make President Joe Biden’s nominees the second Donald to confirm Trump’s presidency is looming.
The Republican president’s victory and the Republican Party’s takeover of the Senate leave just seven weeks of Democratic control of the House.
Democrats have confirmed 213 of Biden’s judicial nominees during his presidency. Several dozen are still pending. To add to these confirmations, Senate Democrats would have to stay in Washington much longer than they planned and also navigate a razor-thin margin that has sometimes hampered them on other Biden priorities.
Trump focused heavily on filling court vacancies during his first term, confirming 234 judges, including three to the Supreme Court. Democrats are trying to deprive him of more opportunities to appoint conservative judges as the party determines its path forward after a sweeping defeat that will leave it out of power in January.
“Senate Democrats can’t give up and go home just because they lost the House,” said Skye Perryman, a senior adviser at Demand Justice, whose efforts will include widespread lobbying, Capitol Hill events and targeted advertising include. “It is even more important now that good, qualified and fair judges are being appointed so that they can serve as a backstop and uphold the rights of ordinary people and protect our Constitution.”
Seventeen nominees have advanced from the Senate Judiciary Committee, eight are awaiting committee votes and six are awaiting committee hearings, according to the U.S. District Court website. The White House announced new judicial nominees in October and November.
The Senate returned from their election break this week. According to the Senate calendar, the legislative body will be out of town around the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. But the calendar is subject to change and it is common for senators to leave Washington for extended weekend getaways.
This pressure will also have to do with an already full schedule in the Senate. In addition to confirmations, the Legislature will be tasked with providing more disaster relief after a series of deadly storms, passing the annual defense policy bill and keeping the government funded and open.
Some Democratic senators such as Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, both independents, are leaving the House at the end of this session. And if Republicans are united to oppose Biden’s picks, Manchin has said he won’t support judicial nominations that aren’t bipartisan, shrinking the Democratic margin.
One nominee, April Perry, was confirmed Monday night for the Northern District of Illinois.
Asked about efforts to pressure Senate Democrats to do whatever they can to confirm these nominees, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said: “We’re going to get as many done as we can .”
Trump on Sunday urged Republicans to oppose Schumer’s efforts. “No judges should be confirmed during this period because Democrats want to push their judges while Republicans fight for leadership,” he wrote.
“Delaying the appointment of highly qualified, experienced judges takes a real toll on voters and creates backlogs of criminal cases – meaning there is every compelling reason for Republicans and Democrats to continue working together in good faith to protect the federal bench. staff,” White House spokesman Andrew Bates said in response to Trump. “There is no excuse for choosing partisanship over enforcing the rule of law.”
Sen. Dick Durbin, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he hoped Republicans would not try to delay confirmation votes for judges, noting that Democrats agreed to a package of twelve judicial confirmations.
“I hope they follow precedent,” Durbin said.
He added that he hopes about two dozen judicial nominees will be confirmed during the lame-duck session.
“That’s about all we can do,” he added.
Demand Justice’s Perryman echoed that sentiment. “There is no excuse for not allowing these qualified individuals to speak for a vote. Americans across the country are working overtime to make ends meet, and the Senate should be working overtime too: Americans deserve better from their elected officials than excuses or delays,” Perryman added.
According to agents working with Demand Justice, the group’s plan includes a widespread lobbying effort targeting key senators, press events urging action and a new website that gives voters a chance to see where the effort stands.
“With just weeks left in the new Congress, it is more urgent than ever that Democratic senators do what is necessary — stay late, work weekends — during the lame duck session,” said Maggie Jo Buchanan, a top official at the progressive organization.
Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts urged Schumer in a series of posts after the election to “use every minute of the year-end hearing to confirm federal judges and key regulators — none of whom can be removed.” by the next president.”
And groups like The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights have done just that reiterated this focus.
“As the Senate returns to Washington and limited time remains, it is critical that our Senators immediately vote on all of President Biden’s judicial nominees,” said Lena Zwarensteyn, senior director of the Fair Courts Program and advisor at The Leadership Conference on Civil Rights and Human Rights.
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Associated Press writer Kevin Freking contributed to this report.
