FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AG THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 1996 (202) 616-2777 TDD (202) 514-1888 STATEMENT OF ATTORNEY GENERAL RENO ON JUDICIAL NOMINATIONS WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Attorney General Janet Reno released the following statement today regarding the status of judicial nominations before the U.S. Senate: "On Tuesday of this week, the President announced his support for a victims' rights amendment to our Constitution. A principal complaint of victims is that our system of justice moves too slowly. One step that we can take right now to address this clearly valid concern is to fill the vacancies on the federal bench. "So far, six months into the Second Session of the 104th Congress, the Senate of the United States has confirmed not one of the 43 judicial nominees at the Senate. Simply by following the process prescribed in the Constitution for the timely appointment of well qualified men and women to fill judicial vacancies, prosecutions can proceed expeditiously. Vacancies, which have grown dramatically this year, cause delays, and, as victims, prosecutors, defendants and civil litigants will all confirm, justice delayed is indeed justice denied. "The Administration has had an excellent and productive record concerning judicial appointments, working first with Senator Biden and then with Senator Hatch as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Over three years we have filled 107 of 115 vacancies that existed in the 847-seat Article III judiciary when President Clinton took office and another 80 of the 121 vacancies that developed between President Clinton's inauguration and the end of 1995. One hundred and eighty-seven appointments in all, garnering the highest ever percentage of "well-qualified" ratings from the ABA. "We entered the Second Session of the 104th Congress with 49 vacancies, with 26 nominees pending before the Judiciary Committee and with high hopes that we would have another productive year and further close the vacancy gap. That has not happened. "Since the beginning of the Second Session of this Congress, we have had four hearings before the Committee. The Committee has sent 17 nominees to the floor of the Senate, and none has been confirmed. If the six nominees who appeared at our fourth hearing this past Tuesday are acted on favorably this morning by the Committee, then we will have 23 nominees on the floor ready to be confirmed. "Zero judicial nominations in this session of Congress is an extremely discouraging record, particularly in comparison to election year standards. Contrary to popular belief, election years have been very productive as far as judicial confirmations. "Indeed, in 1992, when President Bush was running for reelection and Senator Biden was the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, the Senate confirmed 66 judges, more than one third of all of President Bush's judicial appointments and more than in any other year of his presidency. As of this date in 1992, the Senate had already confirmed 37 judges over half of those 66 appointments. "In fact, in each election year since President Ford was in office, the Senate has confirmed a large number of judges. There were 32 judges confirmed in 1976; 64 in 1980; 44 in 1984; and 42 in 1988. Even if the Senate confirms all 17 nominees on the floor and another dozen nominees currently before the Committee, the total will still be the lowest for at least 20 years. "These nominees are badly needed as judges on the courts to which they have been nominated. The vacancy gap has risen from 49 to 68 seats. Twenty-six of the nation's 94 federal judicial districts have "judicial emergency" vacancies -- that is vacancies existing for 18 months or more -- and nominees for 20 of those vacancies are pending at the Senate. "The solution is not to consider only a few nominees acceptable to just one party. I say to the Republican and Democratic leadership alike -- we need the Senate to bring up for a vote each of the nominees sent to it. Let's move all of these nominees, by unanimous consent if possible and if not by floor debate. "Under our Constitution the President and the Senate each have discrete responsibilities in a non-partisan process to appoint judges to fill vacancies in the federal judiciary -- the President nominates and the Senate confirms. The President has fulfilled his responsibility with respect to the 43 pending nominations and will continue to send up nominations. The Judiciary Committee has done part of its job with the favorable action on 17 nominees, and I hope 6 more by the end of the morning. But we need the Committee to continue to hold hearings for pending nominees, and we need the Senate to confirm all nominees sent to it. Victims, indeed all Americans, deserve no less." 96-306