Most appeals court judges were politically active in the appointing president’s party
Evidence
The appeals court judges selected through this process in many ways resemble their counterparts on the district courts; indeed, a sizable minority serve on district courts before being promoted to the court of appeals. Most of the judges were politically active members of the president’s party before their appointment, and for much of the nation’s history, presidents used appointments to these courts as a form of patronage. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 471
Categorization
- XREF: Supports course themes on the political structure around judicial institutions before a judge takes the bench. — connects to: Congress weaponizes new judgeship creation to favor the appointing president’s party — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 462; Over 90 percent of twentieth-century district court judges belonged to the appointing president’s party — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 468; Appeals court appointment shifted from political patronage to ideological screening — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 471 (+7 more)
Broader Connections
- Political selection fills the courts with judges holding established partisan views
#corroborates(0.88) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 2571 - Judges act as temporally extended representatives of their appointing party.
#expands(0.79) - Party affiliation serves as a measurable proxy for a judge’s unobservable political attitudes.
#expands(0.75) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 2587 - Presidents differ sharply in how much ideological screening they apply to judicial nominees
#complicates(0.74) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 493 - Party influence on judges runs through shared values more than direct political pressure.
#qualifies(0.72) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 433