Senate Confirms Judicial Nominee, Processes Several Others through Committee

On Monday the Senate confirmed James Boasberg to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia on a vote of 96-0. Judge Boasberg was nominated on June 17, 2010, and was reported out of committee without opposition on Dec. 1, 2010, but did not get a confirmation vote at the end of the 111th Congress. He was renominated at the beginning of the 112th Congress, and was again reported out of committee without opposition on Feb. 3, 2011.

The Senate Judiciary Committee processed several nominees this week. On Wednesday, it held a hearing for Bernice Bouie Donald, nominee to the United States Circuit Court for the Sixth Circuit and J. Paul Oetken and Paul A. Engelmayer, nominees to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and Ramona Villagomez Manglona, nominee to the District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands.

No Republican senators appeared at the hearing. If confirmed, Mr. Oetken would become the first openly gay man to be confirmed to the federal bench.

This Thursday the Senate Judiciary Committee also reported out the nomination of Edward Chen to the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on a party-line vote. If confirmed, Judge Chen would become the second Asian American to ever serve in the Northern District, which contains San Francisco.

The Senate Judiciary Committee, at the request of Republican senators, also held over votes until its next meeting on the nominations of Goodwin Liu to the United States Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit, John J. McConnell to the United States District Judge for the District of Rhode Island, Kevin Hunter Sharp to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Roy Bale Dalton, Jr. to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, and Claire C. Cecchi to the United States District Judge for the District of New Jersey. Republican senators have made this request the first time nominees come up for a vote in executive session for every nominee during the 112th Congress.

For the most up-to-date and comprehensive information on judicial nominations, visit the Alliance for Justice’s Judicial Selection Project webpage.