More than a year ago, President Obama nominated Jane Stranch, a respected Nashville labor lawyer, to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit. That vacancy had been declared a "judicial emergency" because the Sixth Circuit does not have enough judges to promptly or effectively handle the court's caseload, leading to serious delays in the administration of justice to people in Tennessee and other parts of the 6th Circuit. Yet despite the fact that Judge Stranch enjoyed the support of both of her Republican home-state senators and bipartisan support in the Senate Judiciary Committee, she was forced to wait almost 300 days for an up-or-down vote by the full Senate. When she finally received that vote earlier this month, she was confirmed overwhelmingly.
Unfortunately, her story is all too typical. Nominee after nominee has languished in the Senate for many months, only to be confirmed by wide bipartisan margins when they finally do receive a vote. As Congress finishes its last week in session before the November elections, our judicial system desperately needs the Senate to act.
Eric Holder is the Attorney General of the United States. Tom
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