One month before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, Dana Remus, the incoming White House counsel, sent a letter to senators outlining the new administration’s philosophy for filling certain presidentially appointed roles, including federal trial judgeships.
“With respect to U.S. District Court positions,” she wrote, “we are particularly focused on nominating individuals whose legal experiences have been historically underrepresented on the federal bench, including those who are public defenders, civil rights and legal aid attorneys, and those who represent Americans in every walk of life.”
Colorado’s two Democratic U.S. senators, who, like their colleagues, play an outsize role in judicial nominations from their home state, said the Remus letter struck a chord.
“I was very sympathetic to the memo in that I do think, historically, there has been a tendency to appoint lawyers that have served in large firms to federal judgeships,” recalled Sen. Michael Bennet. “But it’s not the only experience that’s valuable. I think that the Remus memo and the Biden administration’s approach gave all of us the chance to reconsider the scope of what an applicant pool would look like.”
“Anytime the White House tells me something, I take it seriously,” added Sen. John Hickenlooper. “So, I assumed it was very serious.”
The last three years have been transformative for Colorado’s federal district court, with Biden appointing five members to the seven-judge bench. In line with the Remus letter, many of the appointees touted underrepresented backgrounds: a workers’ rights attorney, a resident of the Western Slope and the first magistrate judge to be elevated to a district judgeship.
In interviews with Colorado Politics, Bennet and Hickenlooper spoke about their role in filling vacancies after multiple Barack Obama and George W. Bush appointees, in rapid succession, announced they would take a form of retirement known as “senior status,” opening up seats for new judges.
With no current or pending district judge vacancies for the first time in several years, Colorado is no longer a “judicial emergency” state with an exceedingly high ratio of cases to judges.
“Sens. Bennet and Hickenlooper continue to engage thoroughly and meaningfully with the White House and our committee to identify and support nominees to federal judgeships in Colorado,” said Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin, D-Ill. “Their work is paying off for Coloradans with five highly qualified, diverse judges confirmed to the District of Colorado under President Biden. I thank them for their partnership to help fill these vacancies.”
Getting down to work
As of mid-April, the Biden administration has won confirmation for more than 190 judges. Progressives, however, have raised concerns about a lopsided aspect of the appointments. While states with two Democratic senators have generally made quick work of addressing vacancies — including filling seven out of seven seats on the Seattle-based trial court with Biden appointees — the majority of outstanding vacancies are from states with at least one GOP senator.
District court vacancies still require senators to return “blue slips,” which effectively give them individual veto power over nominees from their home states. Bennet agreed in principle with the idea that senators, “in a functional system,” should have substantial input on judicial nominees. He called the Remus letter a “delicate dance” between the executive and legislative branches of government.
“I don’t think they felt like they were gonna…
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