President-elect Donald Trump has issued a direct challenge to Senate Republicans: halt the confirmation of President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees as Inauguration Day looms. In a fiery post on Truth Social, Trump accused Democrats of trying to pack the courts with “radical left judges” during their last gasp of Senate control. With the GOP set to reclaim a majority in January, Trump is urging Republican senators to “show up and hold the line,” making it clear that any further judicial confirmations are a non-starter.
The urgency of Trump’s demand stems from recent moves by Senate Democrats, who, under Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, are working overtime to approve as many of Biden’s nominees as possible. Judge Embry Kidd’s confirmation to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit earlier this week highlighted just how determined Democrats are to cement their influence on the judiciary. With a razor-thin timeline before Republicans take control, Schumer has made it clear that judicial confirmations remain a top priority.
Democrats are wasting no time. Schumer has vowed to spend every remaining day confirming Biden’s picks, a sentiment echoed by Sen. Patty Murray, who boasted about late-night Senate sessions to push through nominees. Meanwhile, Sen. Elizabeth Warren has openly called for an all-hands-on-deck approach, urging her party to use this fleeting window to lock in lifetime appointments that would be shielded from Trump’s influence when he returns to the White House.
Biden’s judicial record has been a key talking point for his administration, with 261 nominees put forward and 216 confirmed by the Senate. However, compared to Trump’s judicial juggernaut during his first term, which saw 234 judges confirmed, Biden’s efforts fall short. As Democrats rush to confirm five intermediate appeals court nominees and 28 more for trial and appellate courts, Republicans are signaling that the clock is running out on this partisan push.
Leading the charge to slow down the process is Sen. John Thune, who has made it clear that Senate Republicans will not stand idly by. Thune dismissed the idea that GOP senators would simply allow Schumer to stack the courts without a fight, warning that Democrats “thought wrong” if they expected a smooth ride. Trump doubled down on this stance, reiterating his call for a complete halt to judicial confirmations during the lame-duck session. With the balance of the judiciary hanging in the balance, the stage is set for a fierce showdown in the Senate as the clock winds down on Biden’s presidency.
