Intermezzo
Looking back and looking forward
Having wrapped up my treatment of Stephen Breyer’s confirmation to the Supreme Court in 1994, I had been planning to turn next to the interesting battle later that year over Bill Clinton’s nomination of H. Lee Sarokin to the Third Circuit. I drafted my post on that battle weeks ago. But in light of Judge Sarokin’s recent death, I am going to save my account of that battle for next week.
May Judge Sarokin’s memory be a blessing to those who knew and loved him.
In this time of intense hatreds, perhaps it is worthwhile to emphasize that I readily accept that someone whom I regard as a poor judge may have lots of admirable qualities as a person, just as someone whom I regard as an excellent judge may have lots of lamentable qualities as a person.
As the Supreme Court issues its final opinions of the term, as we reach the midpoint of the year, and as the great Fourth of July celebration of our national creed approaches, I’m going to use this intermission to call your attention—especially if you’re a recent subscriber—to some Confirmation Tales highlights so far.
My five most popular posts (judged by number of “views”):
So far I’ve been drawing heavily on my experience as a Judiciary Committee lawyer for Senator Orrin Hatch during the early years of the Clinton administration. In presenting and explaining how things operated back then, I’m trying to establish a baseline against which later developments can be measured. For this purpose, one post that I’d especially like folks to read is “Why Orrin Hatch Was Eager to Help Bill Clinton.”
My posts will soon be moving forward into the last six years of Bill Clinton’s presidency and George W. Bush’s two terms in office. If you had experience with judicial confirmations during those years and have your own stories to offer, please let me know.