Democrats are anxious after President-elect Joe Biden revealed Merrick Garland is one of the possible nominees for attorney general. Garland currently serves as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Democrats are concerned about the repercussions of leaving Garland’s seat empty given the likelihood Republicans maintain control of the Senate.
Garland was nominated to the Supreme Court during the Obama administration in 2016 however the Senate refused to take up the nomination. President Trump later filled the vacancy.
Fox News reports:
McConnell has made clear that filling federal judicial vacancies has been a priority of his during the Trump administration because judges are appointed to lifetime terms. Meanwhile, other legislative accomplishments can be undone by elections.
And so began the judicial appointment conveyer belt in the Senate that’s lasted the entire Trump administration and continues Thursday, as the Senate is set to vote to confirm Charles Edward Atchley Jr., to sit on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. This comes after the confirmation of two other district judges on Wednesday and Thomas L. Kirsch II to replace Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday.
Garland’s appointment would not tip the balance in the D.C. Circuit in favor of Republican-appointed judges. Currently, there are only four judges out of 11 on the circuit who were nominated by Republican presidents, three by Trump and one by George H.W. Bush.
But circuit courts mostly hear cases in three-judge panels, rather than with all of their judges hearing a case simultaneously. This means pulling Garland from that bench would increase the chances there is a majority of GOP-appointed judges on any individual panel. Trump appointees Judges Justin Walker and Neomi Rao, for example, would be more likely to be drawn together for a panel with Obama appointee Judge Sri Srinivasan.
The D.C. Circuit court is considered the second-highest court in the nation because it is often the highest court federal cases make it to and because of the types of cases heard. While the Supreme Court typically hears less than 100 cases per year circuit courts hear far more. For judges, the D.C. Circuit is also traditionally a stepping stone to the Supreme Court.
