by First Liberty Institute • 7 min read
The U.S. Senate recently confirmed the first five (5) federal judges of the Biden administration, including Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the influential D.C. Circuit of Appeals, largely considered the “second highest” court in the country after the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as a handful of judges to the lower district courts.
Judge Brown is considered the top contender to fill a Supreme Court vacancy if Justice Stephen Breyer were to retire from the bench.
Although the appointment of such few judges to the lower courts might appear a slow start to the confirmation of Biden’s judicial picks, this shouldn’t lull us into complacency, and especially not Americans who value and cherish religious freedom.
Recent judicial confirmations could possibly indicate what’s to come in the next several months—a future in which the far Left doubles down in its push to stage a coup of the Supreme Court and the lower courts.
Fewer Vacancies = Intensified Push to Pack the Courts
There are two important points to keep in mind regarding recent judicial confirmations.
First, Senate Democrats have publicly announced their agenda is to “restore balance to the courts,” a not-so-subtle jab of envy directed against the prior administration, which was able to confirm over 230 judges to the federal bench in record time. (Recall that a vast number of those judges were originalists whose records reflected a respect for the Constitution as written, including protecting religious liberty).
Second, because President Biden inherited less than half the number of vacancies of his predecessor at inauguration, it’s no surprise why the current administration is so fixated on exploring ways to “reform” the courts.
If the vacancies aren’t there for President Biden to install his judicial nominees, and more vacancies are needed, then the obvious answer is to create the spots for him to fill.
In other words, we’re led to the magic solution: Court-packing. (Which isn’t just limited to stacking liberal justices on the U.S. Supreme Court but also ballooning the size of the lower appellate and district courts to rubber-stamp radical Leftist policies).
But as the judicial numbers stand right now, President Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer don’t appear to have the goods to deliver the historic rebalance they envision.
As of June 17, there are just over seventy-five (75) lower court vacancies. Even if every single one of those were filled today, it would only be about one-third (33%) of the total number confirmed under President Trump. It’s doubtful the far Left would be quelled by a president who delivered only a third of the impact of the previous administration.
What’s more, success isn’t just measured by the total number of judges confirmed, but how fast they are confirmed. More than 100 days into the Biden presidency, nominations and confirmations have come at a relatively slow pace.
As of June 17, less than twenty (20) nominees are in the Senate’s confirmation pipeline, many which are waiting for an initial committee hearing and weeks—and maybe months—away from a full Senate vote.
To put that into perspective, not since President Reagan has any president been able to confirm more than forty (40) nominees by Dec. 31 of their first year in office.
Clearly, “slow and steady” is not the key to winning this race. So, what about future vacancies? Will there be enough empty chairs on the bench for President Biden to transform the judiciary?
Full Circle: Why the Left & Senate Democrats Need Court-Packing ASAP
Approximately a third of federal judges are eligible to take senior status (quasi-retirement) right now. Not all are expected to retire, and especially not all at once, and so that would maybe open up a couple dozen vacancies for Biden in the near future.
So, at best, these are prospective numbers, and don’t necessarily fall under the direct control of the president and the Senate. Just imagine the optics disaster that would ensue if the president or Senate Majority Leader began strong-arming judges into retiring so they could find their replacement.
If the president’s goal is to leave behind a lasting judicial legacy, wishing on the possibility that some judges may or may not decide to step aside and make room does not exactly change history.
Once again, if future vacancies are not in the realm of control, then that leaves very few alternatives. Here we come full-circle, right back to the scenario where Biden, Schumer and their Democratic allies do have some modicum of control to dictate the number of judges at their disposal: court-packing.
Or, calling it for what it really is, a coup attempt to overthrow our nation’s judiciary.
We can likely expect the threat to stage this brazen judicial coup to intensify over the next several months. (Biden’s alleged “impartial and bipartisan” commission on the Supreme Court is underway and will deliver their recommendation for court “reform” sometime in November).
Don’t be fooled by confirmations trickling in a few judges at a time every other month. This is not a time for complacency. Now, like never before, when we need to go All In together and expose the plot to destroy America’s court system. Without an impartial, independent judiciary, fundamental liberties like religious freedom won’t survive for very long.
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