Actual district court selection gives Senators appointment power despite Senate rarely rejecting nominees
Evidence
This does not mean that the Senate frequently rejects nominees. Rather, the prospect of defeat in the Senate creates a powerful incentive for presidents—or, more accurately, for the officials in the Justice Department to whom the president has delegated the responsibility—to confer with the appropriate senators before selecting nominees. Usually senators have their own candidate, or list of candidates, for the vacant seat, and the president typically endorses the senators’ recommendation. This means that candidates for judgeships will campaign to win the support of the senators. Some senators dislike the process (according to one, “All you get out of that mess is hundreds of enemies and one ingrate”), but most recognize it as an important opportunity to distribute patronage. Presidents have usually viewed the system as an opportunity to trade judgeships for senatorial support on other matters. Attorney General Robert Kennedy exaggerated only slightly when he described the process as “senatorial appointment with the advice and consent of the Senate.” — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 467
Categorization
- XREF: Connects to standard political-science accounts of patronage and legislative-executive bargaining over appointments. — connects to: Congress weaponizes new judgeship creation to favor the appointing president’s party — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 462; Senatorial courtesy gives home-state senators effective veto power over district court appointments — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 467; Senate initiations and presidential involvement in appointments vary by court level — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 650 (+2 more)
Broader Connections
- Only twelve Supreme Court nominees have ever been rejected by the Senate
#corroborates(0.88) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 758 - Senate initiations and presidential involvement in appointments vary by court level
#expands(0.78) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 650 - Partisan judicial confirmation battles stem from structural features of the appointment process
#expands(0.74) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 507