Political Quotes

“Today there are 82 vacancies among the Federal judiciary. We can see another 15 vacancies on the horizon. If we confirm Jeremy Fogel to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in a vote this evening, then we will have confirmed 11 judges so far this year. That is less than four a month. When you know that you have close to 100 vacancies, 4 a month doesn't cut it. The President spoke to this issue; the Chief Justice spoke to it. The Senate can do a better job. At the end of last year the Senate was confirming on average three judges a week. In response to the plea by the Chief Justice in the 1997 Year End Report, the Senate can and should do better this year. Some still resist acknowledging the judicial vacancies crisis and contend that there are plenty of Federal Judges to handle the work of the courts and criticize the Judges for expanding their own jurisdiction. That is certainly not the case among the Federal Judges I know or the Federal Courts with which I am familiar. We should not perpetuate circumstances that require Chief Judges to impose so heavily on senior judges and visiting judges. That is why I introduced the judgeship bill recommended by the Judicial Conference that calls for creating 55 additional judges.”