Orrin Hatch: “I want my remarks to be thought of as constructive remarks rather than not constructive. Yet another week has gone by…”

“I want my remarks to be thought of as constructive remarks rather than not constructive. Yet another week has gone by without this body confirming a judicial nominee. That makes more than 9 weeks since the last judicial confirmation. Only four judges have been confirmed this year, and that is hardly a record of progress. It is not enough for the minority to point out how many nominees were confirmed under their watch 2 years ago. We must also look at what is going on now, and this is a dismal record even for a Presidential election year. Over the last six Presidential election years, both Republicans and Democrats won the White House and both Republicans and Democrats controlled the Senate. On average, the Senate has confirmed 45 judicial nominees in the six most recent Presidential election years, and continued confirmations until October in four of the last six Presidential election years. At this same point in the last six Presidential election years, the Senate confirmed, on average, 21 judicial nominees by now. I repeat, so far this year we have confirmed just four judges. This is not for any lack of activity on the part of the Judiciary Committee. The committee is actually one-third ahead of the average for recent Presidential election years in voting out judicial nominees to the full Senate. We have held 10 nomination hearings this year alone.”