165-3 and 63

[Paragon]

1. Number of Bush judge nominees who have been approved to number to have been filibustered.

2. Number of Clinton judge nominees who were not allowed so much as an appointment hearing by the same committee.

Don't believe the Republican hype, people.

[tritsofme]

1. My only concern is that in 2004 when we regain

the WH and the Senate, how will our President get his nominees through?

[Paragon]

2. The same way Bush should

By nominating judges who interpret the law, not make it...as the hairier of Bush's nominees do.

[Eloriel]

3. I sure would love to see

a link on that. Not that I don't believe you, but just for my own records and future reference.

Eloriel

[dsc]

4. It was part of Justice Brown's hearings

Senator Durbin held up a sign. Featured on this week's NOW.

[snippy]

5. Links.

From a May, 2001 Salon article:

Senate Republicans did use myriad bureaucratic tools to block a staggering and unprecedented 167 of Clinton's judicial nominees -- tools that Hatch is now trying to throw into the incinerator. In particular, he wants to nix an agreement that allows senators to block a nomination of a judicial candidate from their home state. Senate Democrats worried that Hatch was trying to pave the way for the Bush team to push as many hard-right conservatives onto the bench as possible, with little regard for moderation or bipartisanship.

http://archive.salon.com/politics/feature/2001/05/10/judiciary/

From an October 28, 2003 statement by Senator Leahy:

When the Administration has been willing to work with the Senate, we have made progress. Indeed, last night the Senate confirmed the 167th judicial nominee of this President.

In less than three years’ time, President George W. Bush has exceeded the number of judicial nominees confirmed for President Reagan in all four years of his first term in office. Senate Democrats have cooperated so that this President has now exceeded the record in his entire four-year first term of the President Republicans acknowledge to be the “all time champ” at appointing federal judges. Since July 2001, despite the fact that the Senate majority has shifted twice, a total of 167 judicial nominations have been confirmed, including 29 circuit court appointments. One hundred judges were confirmed in the 17 months of the Democratic Senate majority and now 67 have been confirmed during the comparative time of the Republican majority.

http://www.senate.gov/~leahy/press/200310/102803b.html

Whenever I hear a republican complain about democrats blockong "all of Bush's judges," I interrupt immediately and say that a person would have to be massively ignorant to believe the lying hypocrisy of the republicans about this. I then ask how many judges Bush has had confirmed and how many blocked and how many Clinton had blocked. They never know. So I tell them. I usually, though not always, then point out that that person has proved my initial point about massive ignorance and lying hypocisy.

[Mairead]

6. Why is believing or not believing the biggest issue?

Why aren't all that sucker's judicial nominations being filibustered? What the hell is the matter with the Dems--he's not the legitimate President, he shouldn't get ANY permanent appointments!