United States LA Times finally noticed Mitch McConnell's judicial keikaku* (*"keikaku" means "plan")

[bullethead]

Brought to you by AR15.com, whose posters noted this article with much glee (and occasional frustration about the Supreme Court):

Trump has flipped the 9th Circuit — and some new judges are causing a 'shock wave'

Ten new judges in 3 years have turned the federal appeals court far more conservative than it has been in decades. And the full effect hasn't hit yet, judges say.

www.latimes.com

When President Trump ticks off his accomplishments since taking office, he frequently mentions his aggressive makeover of a key sector of the federal judiciary — the circuit courts of appeal, where he has appointed 51 judges to lifetime jobs in three years.

In few places has the effect been felt more powerfully than in the sprawling 9th Circuit, which covers California and eight other states. Because of Trump’s success in filling vacancies, the San Francisco-based circuit, long dominated by Democratic appointees, has suddenly shifted to the right, with an even more pronounced tilt expected in the years ahead.

Trump has now named 10 judges to the 9th Circuit — more than one-third of its active judges — compared with seven appointed by President Obama over eight years.

“Trump has effectively flipped the circuit,” said 9th Circuit Judge Milan D. Smith Jr., an appointee of President George W. Bush.

To assess the early impact of these appointments, The Times interviewed several judges on the 9th Circuit. Some either declined to discuss their colleagues or inner deliberations or refused to be quoted by name, saying they were not authorized to speak about what goes on behind the scenes.

To be sure, some of the new appointees to the 9th Circuit have quickly won the respect of their colleagues. But the rapid influx of so many judges — most without judicial experience — has put strains upon the court and stirred criticism among judges appointed by both Democratic and Republican presidents.

“Ten new people at once sends a shock wave through the system,” a 9th Circuit judge said.

Some of you may remember that a few months ago, I posted a thread linking to a podcast where Mitch McConnell talked about how getting conservative federal judges appointed was a big, albeit low key part of his agenda in Congress. It seems the liberal media is finally taking notice of this fact, mostly because Trump isn't keeping quiet about this success (which I don't mind, since he's delivering results).

One of the appointees is shaking up things in a fun way:

Among those who have caused the most consternation is Judge Daniel P. Collins, a former federal prosecutor and partner of a prestigious law firm.

Some judges said that in the early months of his tenure, Collins has appeared oblivious to court tradition. He has sent memos at all times of the night in violation of a court rule and objected to other judges’ rulings in language that some colleagues found combative, they said.

Collins also moved quickly to challenge rulings by his new colleagues, calling for review of five decisions by three-judge panels, and some of the calls came before Collins even had been assigned to his first panel, judges said.

Active judges vote on the calls behind the scenes, and the public becomes aware of a failed effort only when dissents are later filed by the judges who favored reconsideration. Judges said it was unprecedented for a new jurist to try to overturn so many decisions in such a short period of time. The court has so far rejected most of Collins’ calls.

“Collins has definitely bulldozed his way around here already in a short time,” one 9th Circuit judge said. “Either he doesn’t care or doesn’t realize that he has offended half the court already.”

Fun fact - the court is split between 16 active Democrat judges and 13 Republican judges, which makes me suspect all those people Collins offended were Democrats. Even more fun is this bit:

But the court also has judges on “senior status” who continue to sit on panels that decide cases. Senior status rank gives judges more flexibility but allows them to continue to work, even full time.

Of the senior judges who will be deciding cases on “merits” panels — reading briefs and issuing rulings — 10 are Republicans and only three are Democratic appointees, Smith said.

It'll be interesting to see how this shakes out in the future, since the 9th Circuit is the one that tends to rule against Trump the most, along with side with California's nuttiness in some issues.

 

[Abhorsen]

I'm not sure if I'm happy about this. I'm generally skeptical of activist judges in any direction, and Collins seems to be one, at least from the article. What's important about judges is that their judicial philosophy isn't just an excuse for partisan rulings.

 

[DarthOne]

I'm not sure if I'm happy about this. I'm generally skeptical of activist judges in any direction, and Collins seems to be one, at least from the article. What's important about judges is that their judicial philosophy isn't just an excuse for partisan rulings.

Neither am I. But the Democrats have been doing this for years now. Taking the high road isn't working.

 

[Abhorsen]

Neither am I. But the Democrats have been doing this for years now. Taking the high road isn't working.

Sure it works. Look at Gorsuch and Scalia. The thing conservatives need are committed originalists, not wild right wingers like Alito.

 

[LordsFire]

I'm not sure if I'm happy about this. I'm generally skeptical of activist judges in any direction, and Collins seems to be one, at least from the article. What's important about judges is that their judicial philosophy isn't just an excuse for partisan rulings.

The 9th Circuit has been packed full of leftists blatantly legislating from the bench for decades. This Collins fellow making waves is just as likely, if not more so, to mean he's trying to curb that, as that he's trying to go activist in a right-leaning direction.

 

[Abhorsen]

The 9th Circuit has been packed full of leftists blatantly legislating from the bench for decades. This Collins fellow making waves is just as likely, if not more so, to mean he's trying to curb that, as that he's trying to go activist in a right-leaning direction.

You could easily be right, in which case I would retract my statement. I don't know though.