Divided government lowers judicial confirmation rates.

Evidence

Complicating the appointment process for President Clinton was the Republican Party’s control of the Senate during the last half of his first term and throughout his second term. Divided government typically means that nominees undergo more critical scrutiny. In addition, Republican senators were more than willing to “pay back” Democrats for the harsh treatment given to Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas by the Democratic-controlled Senate when Bork and Thomas were nominated for the Supreme Court. Thus, whereas more than 90 percent of Clinton’s nominees for the lower federal courts were confirmed from 1993 to 1994, when the Democrats controlled the Senate, only 70 percent were confirmed from 1995 through 1996, 80 percent from 1997 through 1998, and 61 percent from 1999 through 2000. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 501

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Divided government and partisan payback slash judicial confirmation rates, leaving many vacancies. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 688; Divided government and lame-duck presidencies predict Supreme Court confirmation failure — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 543; Filibusters and recess appointments weaponize judicial confirmation procedures — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 513 (+3 more)

Broader Connections

• Divided government and partisan payback slash judicial confirmation rates, leaving many vacancies. #expands (0.92) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 688
• Divided government and lame-duck presidencies predict Supreme Court confirmation failure #corroborates (0.85) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 543
• Filibusters and recess appointments weaponize judicial confirmation procedures #expands (0.78) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 513
• A single senator’s party defection can shift control of judicial confirmations. #exemplifies (0.75) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 503
• Partisan judicial confirmation battles stem from structural features of the appointment process #qualifies (0.74) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 507
• Political divisions weaken the effectiveness of governance during crises. #expands (0.72) — Winston Churchill, A History of the English-Speaking…, 1487