Federal Judiciary

No. 44 Should Boldly Recess-Appoint

By Curt Levey

In today?s issue of the National Law Journal, Catholic University law professor Victor Williams decries the fact that the confirmation process for federal judges, as well as for executive and regulatory nominees, has become a lengthy ?Orwellian ordeal ? anonymous holds, blue slips, slow walking, character attacks and filibusters.? Recognizing that ?the challenges facing the next president require a fully formed government,? Williams advises No. 44 to ?boldly recess-appoint? and argues that recess appointments can be made no matter how short the recess. Here is his suggestion for how the next president can ?jump-start? the government:

A list of executive nominees through the subcabinet level should be presented to the Senate by December's meeting of the Electoral College. Regulatory and initial judicial picks should be readied by year's end. . . . The next president's inaugural address should demand immediate Senate confirmation votes. . . . The Senate should be given one month to ?ratify or reject? each wave of nominees. With or without its help, the new government could be fully staffed by Presidents' Day.

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Full post as published by ConfirmThem on March 10, 2008 (boomark / email).