New District Judge: Colorado

 

Gordon Gallagher is the 4th Biden Judge to be confirmed to the District Court of Colorado.  With another nominee in the wings, Biden will have placed 5 of the 7 judges on the Colorado Court.  A legacy District.  Others include, the Districts of New Jersey, Maryland, Western Washington, Eastern Washington, Puerto Rico, Southern California, Eastern California, Nevada, Idaho, New Mexico, Eastern New York, Massachusetts, and Northern Ohio.  With over 100 confirmations, other districts have also been well impacted.

The rub is this: Most of these Districts can have new judges because they are in states with two Democratic Senators.  There is no reason Constitutionally that this is a requirement.  It's a part of the Senates traditions.  Once such traditions inhibited the confirmation of all Federal Judges.  The first to fall back upon the actual Constitution was the Supreme Court.  Next, the Republicans pealed back the requirement under former Leader McConnell of Kentucky for Appeals Court Judges.  Then under president Trump, Senator McConnell flooded the courts with ideologues.

The last level are the District Courts.

In the first two years of the Biden, Republican held state Senatorial members found some compromise.  The Iowa Senators approved a judge for the Southern Iowa District.  The one Republican Senator from Ohio and the one Republican Senator from Pennsylvania approved 3 judges in Northern Ohio, 1 judge in Southern Ohio, 1 judge in Northern Mississippi, and 3 judges in Eastern Pennsylvania.  This still left dozens of seats open with no hope of being filled.

In one stunning reversal, the Republican Senator of Wisconsin approved a nominee only to reverse himself and totally block the confirmation of the same candidate.

This lead the Leader of Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Dick Durban of Illinois to threaten to end the charade altogether.  To finally, end the "gentlemen's agreement" about consent that is NOT in the Constitution.  The demand was that Republican Senators step, and be reasonable.

Since then, a nominee has been identified to fill a vacant seat in Idaho.  Another has just been identified for one of the two open seats in Eastern Louisiana.  Drops in a bucket.  Not to allow the Constitution to work as is was intended, perpetuates the present growing and destructive dichotomy of ideology that is dividing our cohesion and a nation.

Effected seats include:

1 in Northern Alabama

1 in Middle Alabama

1 in Alaska

1 in Western Arkansas

3 in Middle Florida

3 in Southern Florida

1 in Southern Indiana

2 in Northern Indiana

1 in Eastern Kentucky

1 in Eastern Louisiana

2 in Western Louisiana

1 in Western Missouri

3 in Eastern Missouri

1 in Montana

1 in Nebraska

1 in Western North Carolina

2 in Northern Oklahoma

1 in South Carolina

2 in South Dakota

1 in Western Tennessee

3 in Southern Texas

4 in Western Texas

1 in Utah

1 in Eastern Wisconsin

I in Wyoming

40 Federal Judicial Seats where moderate to progressive judges could help to counter balance the hard right turn of recent Trump appointees.  I vote, go for it.