Orrin Hatch: “I am pleased today we are considering the nominations of three extremely well-qualified individuals for the Federal…”

“I am pleased today we are considering the nominations of three extremely well-qualified individuals for the Federal bench. Our circuit court nominee is the Honorable Harris Hartz of New Mexico, whom the President has selected to serve on the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. I have a personal interest in the confirmation of fair, qualified judges to serve on the Tenth Circuit since it encompasses the great state of Utah. In fact, there is an eminently well-qualified nominee from Utah for the Tenth Circuit, University of Utah Law Professor Michael McConnell, who is awaiting a hearing from the Judiciary Committee. His nomination has been pending for 211 days without a hearing. There are two other nominees for the Tenth Circuit who are also awaiting hearings on their nominations: Timothy Tymkovich of Colorado, who has been waiting 195 days, and Terrence O'Brien of Wyoming, who has been waiting 126 days. Part of the holdup has unquestionably been due to lack of action by the Judiciary Committee, but the ABA must shoulder some of the blame as well. It took the ABA over 8 weeks to return its evaluation of Michael McConnell, which, incidentally, was a rating of unanimously well qualified, over 15 weeks for Timothy Tymkovich, and over 12 weeks for Terrence O'Brien. The last of these three ratings was submitted in October, so there is no excuse for any of these nominations stalling any longer.”