New Excellent Judicial Nominees Show White House Cooperation with Senators

Despite the media's constant attempts to undermine the Trump presidency, it is undeniable that judicial nominations continue to be a resounding success for those who value the rule of law and respect for the text of the law.  Prof. Jonathan Adler wrote for The Volokh Conspiracy:

The White House announced its eleventh set of judicial nominees on Monday. As we've come to expect, the Administration put forward an impressive list of jurists, led by four noteworthy picks for appellate courts, including several who are guaranteed bipartisan support. 

The latest appellate nominees are Andy Oldham (Fifth Circuit), Michael Scudder (Seventh Circuit), Amy St. Eve (Seventh Circuit) and Mark Bennett (Ninth Circuit). In addition, Trump nominated John Nalbandian (Sixth CIrcuit) and Joel Carson (Tenth Circuit) in January and December, respectively.

Like previous appellate nominees, these have sterling credentials.  And as Prof. Adler describes, they also have the support of their home-state senators:

Although news stories tend to suggest the White House refuses to consult with Senators about potential judicial picks, this week's nominations tell quite a different story. All of the appellate nominations announced this week enjoy the support of their home-state Senators, including those from states with deep-blue delegations. 

The latest set of nominations illustrates that the Administration is more than willing to consult with home-state Senators before making judicial picks, even for appellate courts. All that's necessary is for Senators to negotiate in good faith. They also suggest that insofar as vacant seats on some courts languish without nominees, it's unlikely due to a lack of effort by the White House Counsel's office.

As Prof. Adler points out, if some of the most liberal and noteworthy senators could come to an agreement with the White House on excellent nominees to help with the increasing crisis in the number of vacancies, other senators must be simply obstructing for the sake of obstructing by their failure to work with the White House.  Despite what is reported in the media and the complaints of Democratic Senate leadership, the White House is willing to work with Democratic senators.  But judicial nominations are a priority, so neither the White House nor Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley are willing to let the Democrats' mindless obstruction keep them from appointing superb nominees after a reasonable period of consultation.  For that, we are immensely grateful.