The final session of Congress is in full swing and we’ve been putting the pressure on Senate Majority Leader Schumer and Senate Democrats to do everything they can to clear the decks and confirm all judicial nominees to ensure that those lifetime appointments are filled by pro-democracy judges before Trump returns to the White House.
And it seemed that Schumer listened, keeping Senate Democrats working late several nights in a row to get through procedural votes, despite Senate Republicans slowing down the process at every turn.
Schumer should be fighting to fill ALL judicial vacancies, even if it means working more late nights, weekends, and after the holidays to get around Republican obstruction. But instead he caved to those obstruction efforts, agreeing to leave four critical seats on federal circuit courts open for Trump to fill next year in exchange for a smoother confirmation process for outstanding district court judges.
This is the opposite of the tone we need Schumer to set as we head into a Trump presidency. Even if these circuit court nominees didn’t yet have the votes needed to be confirmed, Schumer should be leaning on Senate Democrats to stay united in support of every Biden-nominated judge and using Senate Republican absences to his advantage to confirm judges when he has a majority in Washington.
Ultimately, we want him to fight for our democracy even when it’s difficult, not to cut deals that give Trump more power just because it’s easier.
Fill out this form right now to email Senator Schumer. Tell him that you’re disappointed that he accepted a deal that will allow Trump to fill four critical vacancies next year instead of filling them with pro-democracy judges now. Let him know that you expect him to fight back against Republican obstruction efforts, not reward them.
Optional: You're welcome to add an additional comment for the senator in the 'comment' field.
Your Message:
As a constituent, I’m disappointed that you’ve agreed to keep four circuit court seats vacant for Trump to fill next year.
I understand that, in exchange, Republicans will stop slowing down the confirmation process for district judges. However, ensuring that these seats are filled by qualified, pro-democracy judges is critical to protect our fundamental rights and freedoms.
It’s your job to lead your fellow Democrats, especially on important issues like our courts. And with so many Republicans missing votes, there could have been opportunities to confirm these four rather than giving up.
We need our Democratic leaders to fight for our democracy – even when Republicans make it difficult – instead of cutting bad deals that ultimately give Trump more power just because it’s easier.