Trump moves to fill Judge Barrett’s court of appeals seat

The Senate Judiciary Committee has voted to advance Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination to the Senate floor. The Senate is expected to vote on Monday, with confirmation seemingly in the bag.

The Judiciary Committee vote was unanimous. Democrats boycotted the session.

Committee rules require that two members of the minority party to be present for business to be conducted. However, chairman Lindsey Graham proceeded with the vote anyway. “We’re not going to allow [Democrats] to take over the committee,” he stated.

Meanwhile, President Trump has nominated a replacement for Judge Barrett on the Seventh Circuit Court Appeals. The nominee is Thomas Kirsch, age 46, currently the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana.

A Harvard Law graduate, Kirsch has also served as counsel to the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the DOJ’s Office of Legal Policy. He also has experience in private practice as a partner at a major law firm where he handled complex litigation.

I understand that Vice President Pence, a fellow Hoosier, advocated Kirsch’s nomination to the Seventh Circuit. In any event, Kirsch seems well qualified for the position, given his high level experience in both criminal and civil litigation.

The Senate approved Kirsch’s nomination for U.S. Attorney by a voice vote. This time around, he will face fierce opposition from Democrats.

However, Republicans have the votes to confirm Kirsch and enough time (approximately two months) in which to get it done. Barring unforeseen developments, Kirsch will be confirmed by the end of the year.

Notice: All comments are subject to moderation. Our comments are intended to be a forum for civil discourse bearing on the subject under discussion. Commenters who stray beyond the bounds of civility or employ what we deem gratuitous vulgarity in a comment — including, but not limited to, “s***,” “f***,” “a*******,” or one of their many variants — will be banned without further notice in the sole discretion of the site moderator.

Responses