Chief Justice Roberts Calls for End to Senate Obstruction of Judges

Chief Justice Says 'Urgent' Need for Senate Action on Judicial Nominees
Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts says there's an "urgent need" for the political parties to put aside their differences and quickly confirm more of President Obama nominees to the federal judiciary. "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of Judicial Nominations depending on their changing political fortunes," Roberts said in a year-end report released on New Year's Eve. "This has created acute difficulties for some judiciary dist...

Chief Justice Roberts, a Bush appointee, urges approval of more Obama nominees
Today Chief Justice John Roberts, who was nominated and confirmed under the Bush Administration, urged the Senate to allow for confirmation of more judicial nominees.  Both Democrats and Republicans have used their Filibuster power over the previous decade to keep judicial nominees from being confirmed, though liberals claim that Republicans have taken the practice to a whole new level with President Obama.  In his statement, Chief Justice Roberts argues that the entire judicial system...

Chief Justice Roberts urges end of bickering over judicial nominees
WASHINGTON — There is an "urgent need" for Senate Democrats and Republicans to put aside their bickering and fill federal judicial vacancies, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote Friday in his annual State of the Judiciary report. It was his first comment about the partisan gridlock on judges that affects President Obama's nominees. Roberts noted that Democratic and Republican presidents have been frustrated by the "persistent problem" of senators from the opposing party blocking action on n...

Roberts Asks Senate to Confirm Judges
The New York Times reports: Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. called on President Obama and the Senate on Friday to solve what he called “the persistent problem of judicial vacancies.” The plea, in the chief justice’s annual year-end report on the federal judiciary, was an echo of one from his predecessor, Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, who made front-page news on New Year’s Day in 1998 by criticizing the Senate for failing to move more quickly on President Bill Clinton’

Chief Justice John Roberts Urges Progress Naming Judges, Takes Aim At Gridlock Obstructing Process
WASHINGTON — Republicans and Democrats must find a long-term solution to selecting Federal Judges, Chief Justice John Roberts says, while blaming both sides for the political gridlock of Judicial Nominations in the Senate. "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of judicial nominations, depending on their changing political fortunes," Roberts said Friday in his year-end report. "This has created acute difficulties for some judicia...

Chief justice urges progress naming judges
WASHINGTON — Republicans and Democrats must find a long-term solution to selecting Federal Judges, Chief Justice John Roberts says, while blaming both sides for the political gridlock of Judicial Nominations in the Senate. "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of judicial nominations, depending on their changing political fortunes," Roberts said Friday in his year-end report. "This has created acute difficulties for some judicial...

Chief justice urges progress naming judges
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans and Democrats must find a long-term solution to selecting Federal Judges, Chief Justice John Roberts says, while blaming both sides for the political gridlock of Judicial Nominations in the Senate. “Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of judicial nominations, depending on their changing political fortunes,” Roberts said Friday in his year-end report. “This has created acute difficul...

Chief justice urges progress naming judges (AP)
WASHINGTON – Republicans and Democrats must find a long-term solution to selecting Federal Judges, Chief Justice John Roberts says, while blaming both sides for the political gridlock of Judicial Nominations in the Senate. "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of judicial nominations, depending on their changing political fortunes," Roberts said Friday in his year-end report. "This has created acute difficulties for some judicia...

Chief justice urges progress naming judges
FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2010 file picture, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts speaks during a lecture series at Canisius College in Buffalo, N.Y. The Supreme Court will join Congress and the president next year in cutting costs to reduce the federal Deficit, Chief Justice John Roberts said Friday, Dec. 31, 2010 in his year-end report. Republicans and Democrats must find a long-term solution to selecting Federal Judges, Chief Justice John Roberts says, while blaming both side...

Blaming both parties, Chief Justice Roberts decries judicial vacancies
Chief Justice John Roberts is blaming both parties for the political stalemate that's prevented dozens of federal judicial nominees from filling their seats at the bench.  In his annual State of the Judiciary report, Roberts said the partisan bickering has led to "acute difficulties" in "critically overworked districts." He urged policymakers to come up with a long-term solution to the perennial problem. "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the ...

Chief Justice Roberts to parties: Quit bickering, fill judicial vacancies
Stumble This! Republicans and Democrats must find a long-term solution to selecting Federal Judges, Chief Justice John Roberts says, while blaming both sides for the political gridlock of Judicial Nominations in the Senate. "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of judicial nominations, depending on their changing political fortunes," Roberts said Friday in his year-end report. "This has created acute difficulties for some judicial dist...

The Chief Justice on the President's State of the Union Address
Chief Justice Roberts has issued his 2010 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary. Among the topics the Chief Justice addresses is the "persistent problem . . . in the process of filling judicial vacancies," a problem that has "created acute difficulties for some judicial districts." The Chief deems the cause of the problem to be that "each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of Judicial Nominations, depending on their [sic] changing polit...

Chief Justice Decries Partisan Brawling
(NewsCore) - Chief Justice John Roberts decried the partisan warfare that has slowed the appointment of Federal Judges to a crawl, writing in his year-end report Friday that political gamesmanship on Capitol Hill has left some courts burdened with "extraordinary caseloads." "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of Judicial Nominations, depending on their changing political fortunes," the chief justice wrote. He called on Congress and th...

Roberts: 'Urgent need' for U.S. judges
Published: Dec. 31, 2010 at 9:42 PM Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan and Chief Justice John Roberts emerge from the Supreme Court following her investiture ceremony in Washington, Oct.1, 2010. UPI/Roger L. Wollenberg WASHINGTON, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts, in his annual report on the federal judiciary, said there is an "urgent need" to appoint more judges to the federal bench. In his year-end report, Roberts called on President Barack Obama and the Senate Friday to address...

John Roberts: Stop Bickering, Confirm Federal Judges
Even John Roberts thinks the Republicans should stop blocking the approval of Federal Judges. He pretends it's a Bipartisan problem -- but it isn't: There is an "urgent need" for Senate Democrats and Republicans to put aside their bickering and fill federal judicial vacancies, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote Friday in his annual State of the Judiciary report. It was his first comment about the partisan gridlock on judges that affects President Obama's nominees. But Roberts noted that D...

Chief Justice Roberts calls for judicial confirmations
SCOTUS Chief Justice Roberts raised some eyebrows in The Village with his annual report that criticized the slow pace of judicial confirmations, noting only 62 out of 96 vacancies on the federal bench have been filled in the last two years. “There remains,” the chief justice wrote, “an urgent need for the political branches to find a long-term solution to this recurring problem.” Roberts' critique echoes a similar complaint made by former Chief Justice Rehnquist during the Clinton

Chief justice wants vacancies filled
WASHINGTON, Jan. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. Chief Justice John G. Roberts says he wants Senate Republicans and Democrats to quickly fill the 94 vacancies in the federal judiciary. Roberts released his annual State of the Judiciary report Friday and said there is an "urgent" need for Senate Democrats and Republicans to put aside partisan bickering, The Washington Post reported. Roberts noted presidents from both parties have been frustrated by the "persistent problem" of senators from the opposing party blo...

Chief Justice John Roberts issues yearly report on the state of the Judiciary
ABC News’ Ariane de Vogue reports: In his yearly report on the state of the Judiciary released at 6 pm on New Years Eve, Chief Justice John Roberts expresses concern that budgetary constraints due to the economic down turn and the "persistent problem" of judicial vacancies are hampering the work of the Judicial Conference to plan for the future. The Conference--the federal judiciary's policy-making body-- is made up of all the chief  judges of the Federal Court of appeal...

Chief Justice Roberts Blasts Lawmakers On Judicial Nominations
Citing the economic downturn as one of two "immediate obstacles" to improving the performance of the federal judiciary, Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts also focuses part of his annual year-end report on the other problem he sees hampering the judicial branch: political intransigence in confirming Federal Judges. Roberts says the nomination and confirmation of federal judges has become a persistent problem. "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to...

Justice Roberts urges end to partisan fights blocking action on federal judges
Source: Washington Post There is an "urgent need" for Senate Democrats and Republicans to put aside their bickering and fill federal judicial vacancies, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote Friday in his annual State of the Judiciary report. It was his first comment about the partisan gridlock on judges that affects President Obama's nominees. But Roberts noted that Democratic and Republican presidents have been frustrated by the "persistent problem" of senators from the opposing party block...

Roberts: Stop Blocking Judicial Nominees
Like this Story? Share it: History, traditions and key cases, plus what it takes to get on the bench. (AP) WASHINGTON - Republicans and Democrats must find a long-term solution to selecting Federal Judges, Chief Justice John Roberts says, while blaming both sides for the political blockage of Judicial Nominations in the Senate. There are more than 90 judicial vacancies in U.S. district and appellate courts. But only 60 nominees have been confirmed by the Senate for U.S. appellate and district c...

Chief Justice Decries Brawling Over Judicial Nominees...
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Chief Justice Decries Brawling Over Judicial Nominees
WASHINGTON—Chief Justice John Roberts decried the partisan warfare that has slowed the appointment of Federal Judges to a crawl, writing in his year-end report Friday that political gamesmanship on Capitol Hill has left some courts burdened with "extraordinary caseloads." "Each political party has found it easy to turn on a dime from decrying to defending the blocking of Judicial Nominations, depending on their changing political fortunes," the chief justice wrote. He called on Congress an...

A wish list for a progressive 2011
2010 looked like it was going to leave a very bitter taste at the end of the year. But somehow, despite a disastrous Midterm Election for Democrats, the lame-duck session brought us some much needed momentum, as well as the hope that things can, in fact, get better. And despite only having one chamber of Congress to work with, there is potential out there for a productive 2011--and here are some of the things we can hope for as we enter the new year. Senate rules reform. This is perhaps the big...

N.D. senator spurs major gains for American Indians
WASHINGTON — By any measure, 2010 was a banner year on Capitol Hill for American Indians. A huge factor was the impending Retirement of a lone senator — North Dakota’s Byron Dorgan. After years of trying, Congress, spurred by Dorgan, passed several landmark bills for Indians, including laws overhauling tribal Health Care and Law Enforcement and settling a 15-year Legal Battle over lost Royalties for mismanaged Indian lands. Congress continued parceling out $2.5 billion in econ...