Judicial Vacancies on the Rise, and More from CRS
President Obama began the fourth year of his presidency with more vacant circuit and district court judgeships than when he took office, a new report from the Congressional Research Service observed.
The growing number of vacancies in the federal judiciary and the factors that increasingly impede the successful nomination and confirmation of new judges were examined by CRS.
“District court vacancies have grown in number over the course of the Obama presidency, from 42 judgeships vacant when President Obama took office to 59 at present,” the CRS report said. During that period 150 district court judges were nominated but only 117 of them were confirmed.
“During the Obama presidency thus far,… fewer Obama district court nominees have been confirmed by the Senate than were confirmed during the first terms of the four preceding Presidents,” CRS found.
A copy of the new CRS report was obtained by Secrecy News. See Nominations to U.S. Circuit and District Courts by President Obama During the 111th and 112th Congresses, June 1, 2012
Other new and updated CRS reports that have not been made readily available to the public include the following.
What Is Systemic Risk? Does It Apply to Recent JP Morgan Losses?, May 24, 2012
SEC Climate Change Disclosure Guidance: An Overview and Congressional Concerns, May 24, 2012
Cybercrime: Conceptual Issues for Congress and U.S. Law Enforcement, May 23, 2012
Mexico’s 2012 Elections, May 23, 2012
Pakistan-U.S. Relations, May 24, 2012
Pakistan: U.S. Foreign Aid Conditions, Restrictions, and Reporting Requirements, June 1, 2012
U.S.-China Diplomacy Over Chinese Legal Advocate Chen Guangcheng, May 29, 2012
Countering Violent Extremism in the United States, May 31, 2012
Every new institution inherits something – existing incentives, existing staff, decades of prior investment that shaped what’s possible.
This is not the first time Google has agreed to censor imagery at the behest of governments, but be warned: obfuscation at this broad level poses a direct threat to the public’s ability to monitor and scrutinize government operations.
America’s affordability problem is bigger than home prices and rents. The best housing policies make it easier to build homes, and recognize how housing connects to other domains.
America’s affordability problem, for instance, is bigger than home prices and rents. How we build affects household costs like insurance and utilities.