WASHINGTON — Exactly a year ago, President Bush announced his first 11 nominees to appeals courts. Eight of them, including University of Utah law professor Michael McConnell, have yet even to receive hearings in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
Republicans led by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, used the anniversary Thursday to lash out at Democrats in speeches and hearings for dozens of stalled judicial nominations.
Hatch, ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, blamed it on Democrats seeking to block anyone they suspect might be pro-life on abortion.
"Abortion is really the big issue," he said in a roundtable discussion with national reporters.
"That's becoming the unspoken reason that's causing this unfairness," he said. "That's driving the outside groups to put pressure on Democratic senators. If we took that attitude, very few of President Clinton's judges would have gotten through."
Hatch also accused Democrats of racism for blocking minority nominees who are not liberal.
"Liberals will simply not accept a Hispanic, an African-American or even a woman who does not toe the line of the radical, left-of-center special interest groups," Hatch said.
"Liberals and their special interest groups want to force these minorities into one monolithic intellectual ghetto, demanding that they be of one mind," Hatch said.
Democrats, of course, say Hatch and Republicans when they controlled the Senate unfairly stalled Democratic nominees by former President Bill Clinton.
Democrats even planned a hearing Thursday afternoon to focus on former Clinton nominees whom they say did not receive hearings or votes. They say they have done nothing worse than Republicans did previously.
Hatch disagrees. But he says that feeling by Democrats that Hatch was unfair has blocked McConnell's nomination and until recently also blocked the nomination of fellow University of Utah law professor Paul Cassell to federal district court in Utah. The Judiciary Committee recently endorsed him.
"I knew that when they (Democrats) took over the Judiciary Committee . . . they would have to shove it to me. They shoved it to me to the extent that Michael McConnell is now sitting there for the year, with all kinds of Democratic support for him and nothing they can raise against him," Hatch said.
Hatch spouted many statistics in speeches and in media interviews that he says show Democrats have stalled far worse than Republicans ever did.
For example, he said the record number for confirmations by a president was 382 by Ronald Reagan over eight years. Republicans controlled the Senate for six of those years.
Clinton had 377 confirmed, only five fewer, even though opposition Republicans controlled the Senate for six of those years.
"We treated the Clinton nominees better than the Democrats treated the (George Herbert Walker) Bush nominees, and much better than the current Senate leadership is treating the current President Bush's nominees," he said.
In looking at just the first 11 nominees by recent presidents, Hatch said all of Reagan's were confirmed in an average of 39 days. Former President Bush's were all also confirmed in an average of 88 days. And Clinton's were all confirmed, in an average of 115 days.
Only three of the current President Bush's first 11 nominees have been confirmed, and eight have not had hearings after a year.
Of the 99 total judicial nominees submitted by George W. Bush, only 52 have been approved so far. Of Reagan's first 100 nominees, 97 were confirmed. Of former President Bush's first 100, 95 were confirmed. And of Clinton's first 100, 97 were confirmed.
"This president in his second year is being treated like. . . ," and Hatch paused, trying to come up with a word. He finally said, "This president is just being treated really poorly."
Growing gap
Average number of days it took for Senate confirmation of the first 11 judicial nominees by recent presidents, according to Sen. Orrin Hatch:
Ronald Reagan: 39 days
George Bush: 88 days
Bill Clinton: 115 days
George W. Bush: only 3 of 11 have been confirmed; after a year, 8 remain to be confirmed
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