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Talking points memo: GOP Telegraphs Mass Filibuster Of Obama’s Top Judges

Unitedwestand13

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Senate Republicans are standing firm by their threat to block every one of President Obama’s nominees to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, insisting on eliminating all three vacant seats on the country’s second most powerful court.

If they follow through, it could spark yet another nuclear showdown over filibuster rules.

The first of Obama’s three picks, Patricia Millett, was narrowly approved Thursday by the Judiciary Committee on a party line vote of 10-8. Every Republican voted against her, although they didn’t criticize her or take issue with her qualifications. They merely argued that the court is under-worked and that nobody ought to fill those seats.

“I have nothing against her but we should not be adding to that bench,” Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), a senior Republican on the committee, told TPM on Thursday afternoon.

Republicans appear to be united behind Sen. Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) legislation to reduce the number of active judges on the D.C. Circuit court from 11 to eight. He proposes eliminating one seat, transferring one to the Second Circuit and transferring another to the 11th Circuit. (During the Bush administration, Grassley led a successful effort to reduce the size of the D.C. Circuit court from 12 to 11.)

“It’s way overstaffed,” Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), another Judiciary Committee member, told TPM on Thursday. “It does not need these judges, and we don’t have the money.”

Democrats flatly dismiss the Grassley effort as a ploy to maintain the strong conservative tilt of the court, which often has the final word over the constitutionality of executive power decisions and has invalidated various executive actions by President Obama, on issues like labor and environmental regulations and recess appointments. They argue that despite the court’s relatively low caseload, it takes extraordinarily complex cases.

GOP Telegraphs Mass Filibuster Of Obama’s Top Judges | TPMDC

For background information this is the same appeals court that struck down Obama's controversial recess appointments.

this feels like a court packing scheme in reverse, the conservative faction of the republican party want to remove open seats on the D.C appeals court to keep the courts conservative bias and oppose any nominations that Obama suggests to fill the empty seats.
 
I hope the GOP finally grows a pair and obstructs Dear Leaders radical Left Wing destructive agenda

Don't even let him appoint a dog catcher
 
I hope the GOP finally grows a pair and obstructs Dear Leaders radical Left Wing destructive agenda

Don't even let him appoint a dog catcher

um they have been obstructing obama for four years, what gave you the impression that they have not been obstructing him?
 
um they have been obstructing obama for four years, what gave you the impression that they have not been obstructing him?

Democrats had full control for the first 2 years of Obama's Presidency

Now we're stuck with Obamacare. Like I said, Obstruct Obstruct Obstruct everything Obama
 
GOP Telegraphs Mass Filibuster Of Obama’s Top Judges | TPMDC

For background information this is the same appeals court that struck down Obama's controversial recess appointments.

this feels like a court packing scheme in reverse, the conservative faction of the republican party want to remove open seats on the D.C appeals court to keep the courts conservative bias and oppose any nominations that Obama suggests to fill the empty seats.

Quite possible. However, I think it's worth noting that Grassley has been undertaking these efforts sinc back when Bush was in offiec and would've been putting Conservative individuals into that seat. So at least for SOME during this process, it seems there may be a legitimate feeling of "waste" here rather than simply partisan posturing.
 
Quite possible. However, I think it's worth noting that Grassley has been undertaking these efforts sinc back when Bush was in offiec and would've been putting Conservative individuals into that seat. So at least for SOME during this process, it seems there may be a legitimate feeling of "waste" here rather than simply partisan posturing.

true.

but i feel that Grassleys sudden motivation for wanting to remove three empty seats just when Obama wants to appoint three new replacements and just after the D.C court struck down Obama controversial recess appointments is hardly a coincidence.
 
GOP Telegraphs Mass Filibuster Of Obama’s Top Judges | TPMDC

For background information this is the same appeals court that struck down Obama's controversial recess appointments.

this feels like a court packing scheme in reverse, the conservative faction of the republican party want to remove open seats on the D.C appeals court to keep the courts conservative bias and oppose any nominations that Obama suggests to fill the empty seats.

That's part of it. It's all part of it. Yes, we want to save money. Yes, the Republicans want to obstruct Obama at every turn. Yes, they'd much rather leave the court as is until their guy is in the WH.

I say call their bluff. Reduce the number of judges and then when there is a Republican President and they want to put those seats back in play, say no.
 
true.

but i feel that Grassleys sudden motivation for wanting to remove three empty seats just when Obama wants to appoint three new replacements and just after the D.C court struck down Obama controversial recess appointments is hardly a coincidence.

Really? I would think that it's absolutely a plausible notion that he would want to remove three EMPTY seats before they come FILLED seats, because if he believes they're unneeded then filling them would be a waste of money AND would result in someones job being lost if he got them removed later.

For someone with a history of attempting to remove seats from the DC bench, REGARDLESS of Republicans or Democrats in the white house making the appointments, I think you're going off partisan gut instinct to suggest that him attempting to remove seats from the DC bench must be political in nature.

While the seats are empty there's no one being paid for those positions, so they're essentially not there and as such would be, understandably in my mind, rather low priority to deal with. Once you're attempting to FILL those positions however it then raises the issues importance if you feel those positions are unneeded and wasteful.
 
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