Biden and Democrats can do one thing before Trump’s return.
This piece was first published in The Fallout, our weekly newsletter. The federal courts strategy of the administration is the beginning for the Democrats to recognize that the judiciary has become fully politicized and that the longer they pretend otherwise, the worse their policies will be. It’s also an important response to the conservative legal movement’s near-total capture of the federal courts, accelerated during Donald Trump’s first administration.
And if the Biden administration has any hopes of that strategy bearing out in the long-term, it needs to finish the job before January and fill every open judicial seat. It’s time for the bench to be stuffed. The number of confirmed Biden Judges is not the only thing that matters. According to the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, more than 25% of Biden’s confirmed district judge appointees were Black, and nearly 20% were Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander. More than 60% of them are women. The judges have diverse backgrounds, including civil rights and public defence. It’s a phenomenal record and a real bright spot from the administration.
More importantly, those Biden judges represent an important backstop for what’s to come during Trump’s second term. The federal judiciary will be more politically balanced, which allows advocates to bring all of Trump’s worst policies into litigation. Will these lawsuits be successful in the end? Maybe. They might not. According to judicial advocacy groups, there are more than 20 pending judicial nominees. It’s now time to fill the federal bench with Democrats while they still have the chance.
