Two lawyers have been nominated by Obama for positions that are currently vacant on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The first nominee is Caitlin J. Halligan, the general counsel of the Manhattan district attorney’s office and the second is, Sri Srinivasan, the principal deputy solicitor general at the Justice Department.
In expressing his confidence in the nominations sent, Obama said, “Caitlin Halligan and Sri Srinivasan are dedicated public servants who will bring their tremendous experience, intellect, and integrity to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. This important court is often called the nation’s second-highest court, and it stands more than a quarter vacant.”
A prior attempt to nominate the first nominee to this powerful panel failed because the Republicans used the filibuster rule to block her nomination and which resulted in her nomination going back to the White House.
Since it highly unlikely that either of these nominations will receive a Senate floor vote in 2012, it must be noted that the judicial confirmation process shuts down, thanks to the upcoming Presidential elections.
But what this move tells us is that Obama has not given up on Halligan, and that Srinivasan will at least get a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing by the end of the year – increasing the likelihood of his nomination going through in 2013 if Obama is relected.
What is noteworthy is that Sri Srinivasan is the first person of South Asian descent to be nominated to a federal appeals court after serving with the Justice Department since last year.