Number: RL34615
Title: Nomination and Confirmation of Lower Federal Court Judges in Presidential Election Years
Authors: Denis Steven Rutkus and Kevin M. Scott, Government and Finance Division 
Abstract: This report seeks to shed light on whether Senate processing of lower court nominations, particularly to the courts of appeals, has tended over recent decades to slow down in presidential election years. The report begins by reviewing recent debate, and historical events dating back to 1980, concerning whether the Senate and its Judiciary Committee customarily observe a practice referred to as the "Thurmond rule." Next, the report provides narratives on each presidential election year from 1980 to 2004, reviewing Senate and committee actions taken on court of appeals and district court nominations in each of the years. The report then compares these years quantitatively, examining the number and percent of nominations processed and the last dates of committee and Senate action taken. The report also outlines relevant considerations for Senators in deciding whether to seek to speed or slow the judicial confirmation process in a presidential election year. These considerations include the public policy views of the incumbent President (and his successor), patronage considerations for Senators of both political parties, the appearance of a partisan judicial confirmation process, and whether a slowdown might greatly affect the judicial vacancy rate.
Pages: 53
Date: August 13, 2008