In the News

By Nicholas Wu

What's happening: The Congressional Black Caucus escalated its row with the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday over the “blue slip” process, signaling their opposition to two judicial nominees up for consideration. 

Details: The powerful voting bloc said in a letter sent Tuesday to Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) they would oppose the nominees unless Durbin made several changes to the Senate tradition that effectively gives home-state senators veto power over judicial nominees.

Read the full letter.

“The continued misuse of the arcane Blue Slip as a tool for procedural obstruction and the failure to meaningfully engage CBC Members who have a jurisdictionally vested interest in nominations will undermine our joint endeavor to make a dramatic mark on the judiciary,” Black Caucus Chair Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.) wrote in the Tuesday letter. 

Asks: He said they’d oppose the nominees unless Durbin would “act boldly” to make the following procedural changes:

Eliminate blue slips for U.S. marshal and U.S. attorney nomineesRequire only one blue slip to be returned for other judicial nomineesRequire senators to state their reason for a blue slip to ensure their opposition does not stem from discriminationCreate a process to consult Black caucus members with a jurisdictional interest in the nomination on the process

Background: Although they’ve lauded Durbin for his efforts as a whole to get diverse nominees through, Black Caucus members have become increasingly frustrated with the judicial nominations process in recent months. 

They met earlier this year with Durbin over potential changes, and have also said they wanted the two Louisiana nominees, Jerry Edwards Jr. and Brandon S. Long, to be yanked over concerns they weren’t sufficiently consulted on the process, leading to a meeting with the White House. Tuesdays letter came after a Black Caucus meeting late Monday evening with legacy civil rights groups, aides said.

Black Caucus members have stressed their concerns are generally not about the nominees or their credentials themselves and instead come from the potential real-life impacts of judges’ rulings. It’s most acutely felt by Black Caucus members from blue districts in red states who have groused about the need to secure support from conservative senators to get judges confirmed — and the impact of conservative rulings on Black communities.

“Courts matter and judges can serve as a counterweight to the increasingly partisan judiciary, protecting the rights of historically excluded communities and individuals, affirming democratic principles, and centering racial equity in each decision by applying the Constitutional principles of fairness and equality,” Horsford wrote.

Durbin's response: Durbin addressed the concerns at the beginning of Tuesday’s Senate Judiciary hearing,

“I understand the Congressional Black Caucus has raised concerns about White House consultations with Congressman Troy Carter regarding the two Louisiana nominees on today’s panel,” he said. “I do not know the details of these consultations, but I hope any concerns can be resolved as we move forward.”