Free Republic

MacGregor: Up until this time at night we have had freezing but during the day it has gone back up to 40 even 50 degrees. It has to drop below freezing and stay that way for at least two weeks. So if it is now below freezing and stays that way you can do the math. Your looking for something happening no earlier than the 10th; probably no later than the 19th of December. And you're talking about concentrations of Russian troops all the way around the country. We've accounted now formally, these are people who sit in front of...

WASHINGTON — Judge Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump’s pick for the Supreme Court, has compiled an almost uniformly conservative voting record in cases touching on abortion, gun rights, discrimination and immigration. If she is confirmed, she would move the court slightly but firmly to the right, making compromise less likely and putting at risk the right to abortion established in Roe v. Wade. Judge Barrett’s judicial opinions, based on a substantial sample of the hundreds of cases that she has considered in her three years on the federal appeals court in Chicago, are marked by care, clarity and a commitment...

With the Senate back to business in Washington, D.C., this week, the body moved ahead with what Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said is his top priority -- confirming judges -- this time with the Senate Judiciary Committee holding a tense hearing for a Trump nominee named to a powerful slot on the nation's second-highest court. The committee Wednesday considered the nomination of Judge Justin Walker to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, also known as the D.C. Circuit, the first step to confirming the 37-year-old judge after he was nominated early last month. The...

One of President Trump's nominees for the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals broke down in tears during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday, as he disputed suggestions that he would not be fair to members of the LGBTQ community. Lawrence VanDyke was the subject of a scathing letter from the American Bar Association, sent to committee leadership Tuesday night, which alleged that people they interviewed expressed this concern, and that VanDyke himself "would not say affirmatively that he would be fair to any litigant before him, notably members of the LGBTQ community." But conservatives have adamantly defended the nominee. And...

WASHINGTON (CN) – A Mississippi federal judge up for a seat on the Fifth Circuit faced tough questions from Republicans on Wednesday, as GOP senators and conservative legal advocacy groups have expressed rare skepticism about one of President Donald Trump’s nominees to a federal appellate court. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Great Hall. “For a lifetime appointment on the court of appeals, what I think we should be looking for is a demonstrated record as a constitutionalist,” Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden on Wednesday. “As I look at your judicial record, and I’ve asked you...

For some reason, Democrats love to ask President Trump's judicial nominees about their religious backgrounds. Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) was worried that U.S. district judge Peter Phipps, nominated to serve on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, would be no exception. So, he launched a preemptive strike at Wednesday's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing and asked Phipps about his membership in the Knights of Columbus (KoC), a Catholic fraternal organization, and whether it has anything to do with his nomination. After all, Democrats have obsessed over the group in recent years. Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) admitted to being puzzled such line...

Senate Democrats are raising objections to President Trump’s pick for the No. 2 post at the Justice Department (DOJ) over his potential role in the Mueller report’s release and investigations into the president. Jeffrey Rosen, a DOJ outsider who would succeed Rod Rosenstein as deputy attorney general, was attacked by Senate Democrats at a confirmation hearing Wednesday, with senators calling into question his qualifications and what involvement he would have overseeing any probes stemming from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. And Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) was among those who repeatedly pressed Rosen over what the Utah senator viewed as Justice...

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) warned Republicans on Friday that voting for Chad Readler, President Trump’s nominee to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, is a vote against protecting with people with pre-existing conditions. Readler, who served until September as assistant attorney general for the civil division at the Department of Justice, filed a brief last year supporting a lawsuit filed by Texas and other states seeking to strike down the Affordable Care Act. “As Mr. Readler is the author of the Trump administration’s decision to side with Republican attorneys general suing to repeal our health care law, Senate...

The Senate Judiciary Committee voted Thursday to advance President Trump's nomineeto replace Brett Kavanaugh on the high-profile D.C. appeals court, with two Republican holdouts backing off their objections and joining colleagues to support Neomi Rao. The committee voted 12-10 along party lines – with GOP Sens. Josh Hawley of Missouri and Joni Ernst of Iowa joining their fellow Republican lawmakers – to endorse Rao for a seat on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. The seat was vacated when Justice Kavanaugh joined the Supreme Court. Rao, 45, heads the White House Office of Information and...

The Senate is set to escalate a long simmering fight over President Trump's judicial nominees. Republicans are poised to confirm a pick for the influential circuit courts next week without the support of either of the nominee's home-state senators—a first for the Trump era. Eric Miller is the first appeals judge to get a vote on the Senate floor this year, and the 31st of Trump’s presidency. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) set up an initial vote on his Ninth Circuit nomination for Monday evening. “The judicial train is running in the committee and it will soon hit the floor,”...

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert withdrew her name from consideration for the U.N. ambassador nomination, the department said Saturday. “I am grateful to President Trump and Secretary Pompeo for the trust... Developing story

Senate Democrats signaled Wednesday that their next target among President Trump’s judicial nominees will be Michael Park, saying he’s been tainted by his work on behalf of conservative clients. Mr. Park would be the first Korean American judge on the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals — but Democrats said that historic accomplishment isn’t enough to overcome their fears that he would display a conservative judicial philosophy. Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer led the opposition from the chamber floor, saying his work as an attorney involved trying to undermine the Affordable Care Act, roll back affirmative action and defund Planned...

President Trump announced Monday afternoon he will nominate Acting Interior Secretary David Bernhardt to serve as the next Secretary of the Interior. Donald J. Trump ✔@realDonaldTrump I am pleased to announce that David Bernhardt, Acting Secretary of the Interior, will be nominated as Secretary of the Interior. David has done a fantastic job from the day he arrived, and we look forward to having his nomination officially confirmed! 18.7K 12:13 PM - Feb 4, 2019 Twitter Ads info and privacy 6,746 people are talking about this Bernhardt took on the acting position last fall when then Interior Secretary Ryan...

The National Rifle Association’s legislative-lobbying arm announced Tuesday a seven-figure national and region ad campaign to support the confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. The national cable and regional broadcast ads will start airing Tuesday and will run through Aug. 27. The regional ads are to air in Alabama, Alaska, Indiana, North Dakota and West Virginia. “The NRA strongly supports Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court because he will protect our constitutional right to keep and bear arms,” said Chris W. Cox, executive director of the NRA Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA). “It’s...

Judge Brett Kavanaugh is going to be a weeks-long torment for some on the Hill—and I’m talking about red state Democrats. Senate Republican moderates Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski have been very receptive to Kavanaugh’s nomination, easing pressure from the right that they could sink this SCOTUS nominee if they defect. That could be the case, but for now, pressure has ramped up on Sens. Jon Tester (D-MT), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), and maybe Bill Nelson (D-FL). Nelson needs help. Republican Gov. Rick Scott is outworking him on Hispanic outreach, and he’s beating Nelson...

Fairfax, Va. -The National Rifle Association (NRA) applauds the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to fill Justice Anthony Kennedy’s seat on the United States Supreme Court. “President Trump has made another outstanding choice in nominating Brett Kavanaugh for the U.S. Supreme Court. He has an impressive record that demonstrates his strong support for the Second Amendment,” said Chris W. Cox, Executive Director, NRA-ILA. “We urge the Senate to swiftly confirm Judge Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court, just as it confirmed him to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.” During his tenure on the U.S....

~snip~ Delay to defeat Democrats lack the votes to stop the nomination if no Republican senator breaks ranks, and some liberals urged a delay of the confirmation. During a noon conference call hosted by liberal activist groups, one tactician advocated a strategy of using Mr. Mueller’s Russia investigation as a reason to postpone a vote on Judge Kavanaugh, possibly until after November’s midterm elections. “We cannot rush this nomination,” said Leslie Proll, a civil rights lawyer who is advising the NAACP on judicial nominations. “There is a pending criminal investigation into the president. It would be irresponsible for the Senate...

Good for Paul, I wasn't confident he'd change to a yes vote.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York is one of the most talked-about potential Democratic candidates for the White House in 2020. But she has also turned into a thorn in the side of the Department of Justice as she holds up one of DOJ's highest-profile postings. The junior senator from New York plans to use her “blue-slip prerogative” to block the confirmation of Geoffrey S. Berman, if he is nominated by President Trump to be the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York, Gillibrand spokesman Glen Caplin told Fox News. Berman, 58, a former prosecutor in the...

The Senate confirmed President Trump’s 19th federal judge Thursday, approving James Ho for a seat on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and further bolstering the judicial army conservatives wanted to build. Mr. Ho, confirmed on a 53-43 vote, becomes the first Asian American on that appeals court. Democratic Sens. Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Joe Donnelly of Indiana, and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota joined Republicans in voting for Mr. Ho. He’s the third federal appeals court judge the senate confirmed this week, and the 19th judge overall. That’s well ahead of the 14 President Obama had won by...