Family News in Focus - President Bush Renominates Six Judges to Federal Bench

November 17, 2006
by Kim Trobee, Family News in Focus

Democrats broke a long standing tradition in the Senate by refusing to carry the nominations over after the fall recess.

The headlines are trumpeting the arrogance of President Bush for bringing back the names of judges hes already submitted. But Bruce Hausknecht Focus on the Family Action insists the real story is the Democrats stalling that necessitated the re-nominations.

The Democrats, especially on the judiciary committee, want a certain five nominations to go away without an up or down vote and President Bush simply keeps re-nominating them.

Theres a gentlemens agreement among the senators that if nominations are pending at recess, theyll bring them back when the Senate reconvenes. The last two recesses, the Democrats have refused to do that. Tom Fitton is with judicial watch.

President Bush has a right to put these nominees forward and the Senate is under a constitutional obligation to give them full consideration and to act one way or the other on them.

Jay Sekulow with the American Center for Law and Justice praises the Presidents resolve.

President Bush knows the kind of judicial nominee he wants. People that are going to not make up the law from the bench, people that are going to be strict constructionists, people that understand their role as judgeand hes not budging from that one iota.

Hes not optimistic they will get a vote before the Democrats take control of the Senate in January. After that date, the fight will get even tougher.