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Filibuster Threat Gone, Senate Approves Appeals Court Nominee

By THE NEW YORK TIMES
Published: December 10, 2013

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Tuesday confirmed Patricia Ann Millett to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, making her the first person to be forced through by Senate Democrats after they eliminated filibusters against executive branch nominees last month.

By a vote of 56-38, the Senate installed Ms. Millett, a former assistant solicitor general in both Democratic and Republican administrations, to what many consider the second-most-influential court in the nation. Her nomination was initially blocked by Republicans at the end of October.

With their new ability to thwart filibusters, Senate Democrats plan to confirm two more Obama administration nominees to the powerful appeals court before the end of the year, tipping the majority in favor of judges appointed by Democrats.

“I’m pleased that in a bipartisan vote, the Senate has confirmed Patricia Millett to be a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, filling a vacancy that has been open since 2005,” President Obama said in a statement issued after the vote. “She has served in the Department of Justice for both Democratic and Republican presidents. I’m confident she will serve with distinction on the federal bench.”

The Senate was also advancing the nomination of Representative of Melvin Watt, a North Carolina Democrat, to a federal housing regulatory post. Republicans had blocked his nomination, too, before the rules change.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/11/us/politics/senate-democrats-filibuster-threat-gone-approve-appeals-court-nominee.html?_r=0

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