Blumenthal Statement On Republican Obstruction Of D.C. Circuit Court Nominees
Republicans Have Blocked Consideration Of Four Nominees To Serve On What Some Consider Nation’s Second Highest Bench
(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) issued the following statement after Senate Republicans blocked the nomination of Robert L. Wilkins to the D.C. Circuit Court, preventing a yes-or-no vote on his nomination. Wilkins is the fourth nominee Senate Republicans have prevented from receiving an up-or-down vote by using procedural hurdles. Republicans previously blocked the nominations of Caitlin Halligan, Patricia Millett, and Nina Pillard.
“A major Senate rule change is apparently the only recourse left to stop extreme filibuster abuse, which today blocked yet another indisputably qualified nominee from service on the D.C. Circuit Court. This vote marks a tragic turning point. Misuse of rules – involving petty, partisan politics beneath the Senate – is a disgraceful disservice to our nation’s justice system. Rejecting nominees of extraordinary intellect and integrity to fill much needed judgeships does damage to our country, the courts, and the Congress.