New Fifth Circuit Nominee

Perhaps in response to our recent puzzlement over the president's failure to submit nominees for several vacant court of appeals judgeships, President Bush nominated another appellate judge today. The new nominee is Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod, who currently serves as a state district judge in Houston, Texas. She joins, Leslie Southwick of Mississippi, who is pending before the Judiciary Committee, as the second Fifth Circuit nominee of this term. We can only hope that the president is taking his time to announce new nominees in order to engage in bipartisan consultation so that we don't end up with more of the kinds of divisive nominees who galvanized public opposition earlier in his presidency. Only time -- and a full investigation into Judge Elrod's record -- will tell. For a full report on judicial selection during the first six years of the administration, check out AFJ's recent report here.