McConnell: GOP senators must OK Obama judges
Another battle over judges may be brewing between President Obama and Congress.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., indicated that the chamber will only consider Obama-nominated judges if they have the approval of Republican senators.
"So far, the only judges we've confirmed have been federal district judges that have been signed off on by Republican senators," McConnell told radio host Hugh Hewitt.
When Hewitt asked if that pattern would continue, McConnell said: "I think that's highly likely, yeah."
Obama and aides have in the past protested Republican efforts to block some judicial nominees, to the point where the Senate changed its filibuster rules when the Democrats were in charge.
"The Senate has confirmed four district judges thus far in 2015, according to the official records. Those confirmations filled seats in judicial districts in Texas and Utah, both states with Republican senators who serve on the Judiciary Committee. Several other nominees to be federal district judges have been reported out by the Judiciary Committee for positions in states with at least one Democratic senator.
"But one thing appears certain: the Republican Senate won't come close to the record matched by Democrats in the 113th Congress. The decision by then-Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., to deploy the nuclear option and end the 60-vote requirement for all nominations except for Supreme Court picks resulted in 132 federal judges confirmed to the bench -- 44 percent of Obama's judges overall and the best showing in decades."