Political Quotes

“Mr. President, last night, as snow fell in Washington, DC, the Senate freeze on confirming judges began to thaw a bit. I thank the leaders for clearing 4 of the 38 judicial nominations awaiting final action by the Senate. These nominations will fill a few of the historically high number of Federal judicial vacancies around the country, including in the Eastern District of California, one of the districts with the highest workloads in the country. All the nominations confirmed last night were reported by the Judiciary Committee without objection way back in May and early June. I hope this is an indication that the other 34 judicial nominees pending in the Senate will receive consideration and a vote by the Senate before the Senate adjourns. Senate consideration of the four nominations we confirmed last night was long overdue. In fact, these are the first judicial confirmations the Senate has considered since September 13, more than 3 months ago. For months, these nominations and many others have languished before the Senate, without explanation and for no reason. As a result of these needless delays, of the 80 judicial nominations reported favorably by the Judiciary Committee, only 45 have been considered by the Senate. Even with yesterday's confirmations, that remains a historically low number and percentage.…”