Free Republic

With the help of Senate Republicans, Donald Trump spent the first three years of his presidency remaking the federal judiciary in his own image. The president has appointed 133 district court judges, 50 appeals court judges, and two Supreme Court justices—meaning about one-fifth of the nation’s federal trial judges, and one-fourth of its federal appellate judges, are Trump appointees. These jurists are leading a conservative revolution that will upend decades of precedent and enshrine reactionary policies into the law. The transformation has only just begun. But for a glimpse of where the judiciary is heading if Trump wins a second...

As I wrote earlier this month, Sen. Majority Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is not messing around when it comes to judicial confirmations. To date, the McConnell-led Senate has confirmed 174 judges out of the 234 nominated by President Trump, some of who were confirmed as Trump’s impeachment was being voted on in the House. It’s an impressive record so far, and in an interview McConnell did on Fox and Friends this morning, he said important Senate business will continue to be conducted no matter how long House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) decided to hold on to the articles of impeachment. The...

Full Title: N.Y. Gov. Cuomo blocks some federal judges from officiating at weddings — because they might be Trump nominees New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has vetoed a noncontroversial bipartisan bill that would have allowed all federal judges to officiate weddings in the state because some might have been nominated to the bench by President Donald Trump. "I cannot in good conscience support legislation that would authorize such actions by federal judges who are appointed by this federal administration," Cuomo's veto message stated. "President Trump does not embody who we are as New Yorkers," the Democratic governor added Friday. "The...

New York’s TDS-addled governor Andrew Cuomo (D) vetoed a bill that would have permitted federal judges to officiate at weddings because Trump. The bill was innocuous and passed both NY state’s senate and assembly with overwhelming and bipartisan support. Cuomo’s veto memo specified that Trump-appointed federal judges should not be allowed to perform weddings in the state . . . because Trump appointed them.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has vetoed a non-controversial bipartisan bill that would have allowed all federal judges to officiate weddings in the state because some might have been nominated to the bench by President Donald Trump. "I cannot in good conscience support legislation that would authorize such actions by federal judges who are appointed by this federal administration," Cuomo's veto message stated, the New York Post reported. "President Trump does not embody who we are as New Yorkers," the Democratic governor added on Friday. "The cornerstones that built our great state are diversity, tolerance, and inclusion. Based on these...

In early November, during the impeachment inquiry against him, President Donald Trump threw a celebration in the East Room of the White House. The guests: a group of Senate Republicans and Leonard Leo, head of The Federalist Society. The occasion: President Trump’s appointing 44 federal appeals court judges – about one-quarter of the entire appeals court bench. The Trump administration and Senate Republicans – along with The Federalist Society, the conservative legal group tasked by the administration with identifying and vetting reliably conservative nominees – have over the past three years developed a pipeline of relentless efficiency for lifetime judicial...

185 judges now confirmed.

DETROIT (AP) — A 95-year-old Detroit federal judge is reducing is caseload after 40 years on the bench. U.S. District Judge Avern Cohn is dropping criminal cases and will handle only civil lawsuits. “Judge Cohn is in his mid-90s and has been carrying a full caseload for all these years,” court spokesman David Ashenfelter said. “He has decided that it’s time to cut back.” Cohn was appointed in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter. He qualified for “senior status” in 1999, which can trigger a smaller caseload and give the court an opportunity to get an additional judge. But Cohn didn’t...

Construction of a private section of border wall in Mission, Texas, is continuing despite a district judge's Tuesday decision to temporarily block the work, The Guardian reported Saturday. The expected 3.5-mile-long private section of border wall is being funded by We Build the Wall, a nonprofit organization founded by U.S. Air Force Veteran and Purple Heart recipient Brian Kolfage that has raised more than $25 million since its start in December 2018. Workers were moving soil, digging trenches and positioning the physical wall on Thursday and Friday after Vasquez's ruling

The Senate confirmed four trial court nominees to the federal bench Wednesday, among them a public interest lawyer Democrats say will trim abortion rights. The package passed as the House Judiciary Committee heard testimony from constitutional scholars pursuant to its impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump. Senators confirmed Sarah Pitlyk to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri on a 49-44 vote that largely followed party lines. “Sarah’s strong legal experience, sharp intellect, and commitment to the rule of law make her an outstanding choice for the Eastern District,” GOP Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri said in...

SAN DIEGO—Immigration judges in this city are presenting a challenge to the Trump administration’s policy of sending asylum-seeking migrants back to Mexico, terminating such cases at a significantly higher rate than in any other court, according to federal data. Between January and the end of September, immigration judges in San Diego terminated 33% of more than 12,600 Migrant Protection Protocols cases, also known as Remain in Mexico, according to data collected by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University. Judges in El Paso, Texas, the busiest court hearing MPP cases, terminated fewer than 1% of their more than 14,000...

For the last 50 years, I have been hearing or reading versions of this argument:The Second Amendment is clear. All we have to do is bring a case before the court(s) and we win. Why doesn't the NRA, local lawyer, local defendant or whoever, just push a case forward? The law is clear!When I was young and naive, I wondered the same thing. Why wasn't the NRA bringing a Second Amendment case before the courts, and specifically, to the Supreme Court? A more general question is: How do judges routinely escape consequences when violating their oaths of office; when implementing...

The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals (Alabama, Florida and Georgia) currently has 12 active judges after the appointment of 3 already this term by President Trump; the Circuit is now tied 6 - 6 with R and D appointees; with 3 more vacancies to fill; each of which has a current nominee awaiting vetting and a vote. The tie-breaking 13th judge will be under active consideration for a cloture vote this afternoon on the Senate floor with likely confirmation tomorrow; making in 7R to 6D. Once the additional two vacancies are filled; an enduring 9R to 6D majority will be...

The Senate on Thursday confirmed Steven Menashi to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, bringing an end to a confirmation battle that at times drew ire from members of both parties toward the judicial nominee. The Senate confirmed Menashi 51 to 41, largely along party lines. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, broke with her party to vote against the nominee. Menashi’s confirmation flips the Second Circuit to a majority of Republican appointees.

There are thirteen judges on the 2nd Circuit (encompasses New York, Connecticut, Vermont). There are currently six democrat appointees (3 Clinton, 3 Obama), six republican appointees (2 George W, 4 Trump) and one vacancy. Cloture was agreed to on Steven Menashi today! When he is confirmed, the 2nd Circuit will have flipped. And this ain't the south. This is the NEW YORK circuit.

With certain federal district courts operating with a profound number of judicial vacancies, court leaders are increasingly going public with the need to fully populate their benches. The most recent salvo has come from Chief Judge Virginia Phillips of the Central District of California, who wrote a letter to Senators Lindsey Graham, Dianne Feinstein, and Kamala Harris, urging them to find ways to fill the district’s vacancies. The Central District of California, encompassing Los Angeles and environs, is authorized by federal law to have 28 active district judges. The Judicial Conference of the United States recently concluded that in fact,...

I have been warning you and warning you: It just takes one judge, wanting to make history, to kick the props out from under our tottering societal embrace of human exceptionalism. In Argentina–next door to Brazil, where a judge was previously poised to grant a writ of habeas corpus to a chimp when the animal died–a court has declared an orangutan a “person.” From the Reuters story: An orangutan held in an Argentine zoo can be freed and transferred to a sanctuary after a court recognized the ape as a “non-human person” unlawfully deprived of its freedom, local media reported...

East Room 3:28 P.M. EST THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Thank you very much. We have another big record stock market day and another record in the stock market in the history of our country, which, to me, means jobs and a lot of other things. We’re doing really well, and I just wanted to let you know. I think it’s the 119th day that we’ve set a record. So that’s good stuff. (Applause.) So, good afternoon and thank you all for being here as we celebrate a profoundly historic milestone and a truly momentous achievement. Thanks to many...

A list of President Trump's new judge nominees is at the link.

 Issued on: October 11, 2019 In order to have a functioning legal immigration system that serves America’s national interests, we must have rules, laws, conditions, and procedures for entry into the United States—and the violation of these laws and rules must be enforced. President Donald J. Trump BLOCKED FROM ENFORCING CONGRESSIONALLY ENACTED IMMIGRATION LAW: President Donald J. Trump is working tirelessly to restore enforcement of our immigration laws as enacted, but activist judicial rulings are restricting the Administration from following the plain text of Federal law. One shocking judicial ruling after another has barred the Administration from enforcing the immigration...