DEMOCRATS MUST SPEED UP EXECUTIVE AND JUDICIAL CONFIRMATIONS
Unless the confirmation process is ramped up, Biden may lose his chance to confirm more judicial and executive nominees if MAGA Republicans take over the Senate.
QUICK READ: MAGA Republicans have been abusing the confirmation process to thwart Biden’s agenda and prevent him from governing effectively. Unless Senate Democrats speed up the process and force the GOP to give up part of its August recess, they won’t even be able to consider the 1,000+pending executive and judicial nominations before the November midterms. This will greatly hamper Biden’s ability to govern, should Democrats lose their slim majorities.
TAKE ACTION NOW:
BACKGROUND
After 18 months in office, President Biden still lacks the personnel needed to carry out his agenda–largely because MAGA Republicans (by slowing the confirmation process of Presidential appointments) and their right-wing, dark-money allies (by slandering nominees) are hobbling the government.
Of the executive branch’s 806 most important positions requiring Senate confirmation, only 400 of the 556 nominated have been confirmed, 147 are under consideration, and 9 await formal nomination. Another 161 will need nominees because they’re Trump holdovers, serving fixed terms, or vacant. And almost 25% of America’s embassies lack ambassadors.
Nor has Biden transformed the federal judiciary.
Of the 112 federal judges nominated, only 69 (including Justice Jackson) have been confirmed. An additional 117 vacancies (74 current) have no nominees. Since most of those confirmed come from Democratic states, Biden’s appointments have hardly changed the courts’ composition.
This year, the Senate’s spent only 90 days in session. It’s estimated that filling all these vacancies would take 159+ days, assuming the Senate did nothing else.
Without drastic changes in the Senate’s practices, it will finish the year with at least 60 judicial and many executive vacancies. Senate Democrats cannot allow MAGA Republicans to continue blocking these nominees,” especially since Democrats could soon lose their slim Senate majority.
ACTION One: Call the Senate.
Script for Oregon Senators
SEN. MERKLEY: Portland office: 503-326-3386 | D.C. office: 202-224-3753
My name is [--] and I'm a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].
The Senate’s dysfunction is impeding Biden’s ability to govern effectively and to blunt the power of Trump’s ultraconservative judicial appointments. You must convince Senate leadership to take immediate steps to reform the confirmation process and increase the political costs of delays. Recesses must be shortened or eliminated to ensure all Biden’s nominees are confirmed before the new Congress takes over.
SEN. WYDEN:
Portland office: 503-326-7525 | D.C. office: 202-224-5244
My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].
The Senate’s dysfunction is impeding Biden’s ability to govern effectively and to blunt the power of Trump’s ultraconservative judicial appointments. You must convince Senate leadership to take immediate steps to reform the confirmation process and increase the political costs of delays. Recesses must be shortened or eliminated to ensure all Biden’s nominees are confirmed before the new Congress takes over.
Script for Republican Senators
D.C switchboard: 202-224-3121
My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], [state], [zip code].
Under our Constitution, the President has the right to choose both his executive employees and his judges. It is time for you to stop obstructing and start confirming his nominees.
ACTION TWO: Call the House.
Script for Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01)
Oregon office: 503-469-6010 | DC office: 202-225-0855
My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].
The Senate’s dysfunction is impeding Biden’s ability to govern effectively and to blunt the power of Trump’s ultraconservative judicial appointments. Please convince Senate colleagues to demand immediate changes in Senate rules that will ensure all Biden’s nominees are confirmed before the new Congress takes over.
Script for Cliff Bentz (OR-02)
Medford office: 541-776-4646 | DC office: 202-225-6730
My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].
Under our Constitution, the President has the right to choose both his executive employees and his judges. Tell your Senate colleagues to stop obstructing and start participating in the governing process, which they were sent to Congress to do.
Script for Earl Blumenauer (OR-03)
Oregon office: 503-231-2300 | DC office: 202-225-4811
My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].
The Senate’s dysfunction is impeding Biden’s ability to govern effectively and to blunt the power of Trump’s ultraconservative judicial appointments. Please convince Senate colleagues to demand immediate changes in Senate rules that will ensure all Biden’s nominees are confirmed before the new Congress takes over.
Script for Peter DeFazio (OR-04)
Eugene office: 541-465-6732 | DC office: 202-225-6416
My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].
The Senate’s dysfunction is impeding Biden’s ability to govern effectively and to blunt the power of Trump’s ultraconservative judicial appointments. Please convince Senate colleagues to demand immediate changes in Senate rules that will ensure all Biden’s nominees are confirmed before the new Congress takes over.
Script for Kurt Schrader (OR-05)
Salem office: 503-588-9100 | DC office: 202-225-5711
My name is [–] and I’m a constituent from [city], Oregon [zip code].
The Senate’s dysfunction is impeding Biden’s ability to govern effectively and to blunt the power of Trump’s ultraconservative judicial appointments. Please convince Senate colleagues to demand immediate changes in Senate rules that will ensure all Biden’s nominees are confirmed before the new Congress takes over.
ACTION 3: GOOD TROUBLE
GOOD TROUBLE: Below are opportunities to fight for our democracy. As John Lewis said, go make some “good trouble.”
Please watch the Jan. 6 Committee hearings, originally scheduled to air this evening.
NEXT TUESDAY LETTER WRITING PARTY, 11:30am-12:30pm - INDIVISIBLE OREGON:
https://www.mobilize.us/swingleft/event/442887/Fridays at 4 - Letter and Postcard Writing — Indivisible Oregon.
Learn about persuasive language and communication research at the Zoom ASO Movement Briefings every second Wednesday.
Join the campaign to hold the House and Senate at GiveNoGround.org
Work to protect democracy in the House by replacing retiring US Representative Peter DeFazio with another Democrat, replacing Democrat Kurt Schrader, the “Manchin of the House,” with a progressive, and electing a Democrat in Oregon’s new Congressional District 6.
Demand that your primary news source stop creating false equivalencies and just report the truth.
Check out the Poor People's Campaign Readies 'Massive, Nonviolent' Effort to Save Democracy
Outside of Portland? Check out COIN Oregon.
further reading:
Time is running out to confirm Biden’s nominees
Democrats are Headed for a Disaster With Unfilled Judicial Vacancies
‘Lunacy’: Democrats Risk Running Out of Time to Confirm Federal Judges
The Extraordinary (Time) Costs of Senate Republican Nomination Blockades
On the Bench: Tracking President Biden’s Judicial Nominations
Biden’s judicial appointments—still very diverse but numbers may be falling off
Biden Political Appointee Tracker
The State of Independent agency Nominations—Update for Spring 2022
Biden agency vacancies to drag on White House priorities
Senate Republicans Unveil Tactic to Potentially Block All Biden Nominees
The Slime Machine Targeting Dozens of Biden Nominees
Biden net neutrality and antitrust agenda stalls as nominees languish in Senate
Can Joe Biden’s relentless diplomacy work without diplomats?
