The Senate approved the nominations of three judges on Monday, under an agreement to allow noncontroversial nominations to receive consideration. So, good news for Oregon, where Marco Hernandez has been approved, along with Paul Kinloch Holmes of Arkansas and Diana Saldana of Texas. That makes up for half of the federal judges who've retired nationally so far in 2011.
The judicial crisis is so deep and pervasive, the WashPo put the story on page one, above the fold:
Federal judges have been retiring at a rate of one per week this year, driving up vacancies that have nearly doubled since President Obama took office. The departures are increasing workloads dramatically and delaying trials in some of the nation's federal courts.
The crisis is most acute along the southwestern border, where immigration and drug cases have overwhelmed court officials. Arizona recently declared a judicial emergency, extending the deadline to put defendants on trial. The three judges in Tucson, the site of last month's shooting rampage, are handling about 1,200 criminal cases apiece.
Since Obama took office, federal judicial vacancies have risen steadily as dozens of judges have left without being replaced by the president's nominees. Experts blame Republican delaying tactics, slow White House nominations and a dysfunctional Senate confirmation system. Six judges have retired in the past six weeks alone.
Senate Republicans and the White House are vowing to work together to set aside the divisions that have slowed confirmations, and the Senate on Monday approved Obama nominees for judgeships in Arkansas, Oregon and Texas. Eight more nominees are expected to receive votes in the coming weeks....
There are now 101 vacancies among the nation's 857 district and circuit judgeships, with 46 classified as judicial emergencies in which courts are struggling to keep up with the workload. At least 15 more vacancies are expected this year, according to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. When Obama took office in 2009, 54 judgeships were open.
Most of the departing judges have taken what is known as senior status - semi-retirement in which they receive full pay but can take a reduced workload and are not considered active members of the court. But court officials say the increased work, heavier caseloads and lack of pay increases are prompting more judges to leave the bench entirely.
The effect is most visible in civil cases, with delays of up to three years in resolving discrimination claims, corporate disputes and other lawsuits.
It's essentially a federal judicial shutdown, laid almost entirely at the hands of the Senate Republicans who blocked dozens of approvals in the past two years. The administration is also not nominating at a rate to keep up with the vacancies. "[I]n 2009 and 2010, the administration nominated 103 district and circuit judges, compared with 129 during Bush's first two years and 140 in President Bill Clinton's first two years...."
Watching nominations make it through committee, only to wither and die on the way to the floor has to be exceedingly frustrating for the administration, but making this a real fight--and showing how the GOP is preventing the courts from functioning--should be a top priority for the administration and Senate Dems.