The Solution to the Trump Judge Problem Nobody Wants to Talk About

[marmar]

(Slate) Legal analysts lit up social media on Monday in response to the broad and potentially devastating order by Judge Aileen M. Cannon, a Donald Trump appointee to the Southern District of Florida, temporarily halting the criminal investigation of the former president and his alleged pilfering of classified documents. Her order further authorized a special master to identify and return the small fraction of materials seized in last month’s court-approved search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence that may belong to him. One analyst after another meticulously detailed the failings of Cannon’s reasoning: It was “untethered to the law,” “a political conclusion in search of a legal rationale,” “deeply problematic,” “laughably bad.” At some point, one truly runs out of euphemisms for lawless partisan hackery.

It’s possible to agree with every one of these criticisms but still find them less than satisfying. Because at the end of the day, no matter how much withering criticism she faces, Cannon still gets to put on the black robe and run interference for her benefactor. She will still get a standing ovation at some future Federalist Society gathering. She remains in control of this case. But it’s not just Cannon: Many smart lawyers also noted that the Justice Department now faces the unenviable task of having to appeal this decision up to higher courts that are filled with Trump appointees, which takes the sting out of the opprobrium: For all we know, the Trump-stacked 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals or five radical justices on the Supreme Court may also greet her outrageous decision with a standing ovation.

So the problem is not just the extreme and heinous flaws in Cannon’s ruling. It’s also the Trump-shaped world in which Cannon operates, with impunity, which we will all have to endure for the foreseeable future. It’s the brutal reality that we may face a steady stream of depraved decisions like Cannon’s for the rest of our lives—and the pain of hearing from every quarter that nothing can be done to remedy it.

....(snip)....

There are solutions out there for the problem of Trump’s runaway judges. Expanding the courts—even just the lower courts—is the most bulletproof. Congress has periodically added seats to the federal judiciary from its inception to help judges keep up with ever-ballooning caseloads. Today’s litigants (who are not named Donald Trump) often face yearslong court delays. The Judicial Conference, a nonpartisan government institution that develops administrative policies, has begged Congress to add seats to the lower courts. Some Republicans have supported the idea in recognition of the crisis facing our understaffed judiciary. Letting Joe Biden balance out far-right courts like the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals—which will weigh Cannon’s ruling if the government appeals—would go a long way to tame the jurisprudence of Trumpism. When district court judges know their radical decisions will be overturned on appeal, they may be less likely to swing for the fences in the first place. ..............(more)

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2022/09/trump-judge-aileen-cannon-court-reform.html

[Fullduplexxx]

1. right now dems lack the political willto expand the courts

[Mad_Machine76]

8. And the numbers

And we have two (and maybe more) members unwilling to abolish the filibuster to do it. Need to elect more Democrats to the House and Senate.

[spooky3]

2. More good reasons why we must hold the house and add seats in the Senate this fall nt

[PortTack]

3. Just a reminder.. President Biden has appointed more judges than any other president...ever

[rsdsharp]

5. Sorry, that's not even close to true.

From Wikipedia:

As of September 6, 2022, the United States Senate has confirmed 76 Article III judges nominated by Biden: One Associate Justice to the Supreme Court, 18 judges for the United States courts of appeals and 57 judges for the United States district courts.

Trump appointed 226 judges, by way of comparison. That’s three times as many as Biden, at least so far. Biden had appointed more judges at this point in his first term, but not the most ever.

[PortTack]

7. Should have in the amount of time he's been in office

[Mad_Machine76]

9. 226 during his entire 4 years? (Trump)

[rsdsharp]

10. Yes. That's why I ended my post with this sentence:

Biden had appointed more judges at this point in his first term, but not the most ever.

[Mad_Machine76]

12. That makes sense

He's around 150 though already in not even two years yet. If we hold the Senate and more or less keeps up the same pace (contingent on vacancies of course), he could certainly end up with even more by 2025

[rsdsharp]

13. No, he's had 77 judges confirmed as of today.

[Mad_Machine76]

14. Oh.

I thought 76 was a separate number.

[rsdsharp]

15. No, 77 is the total as of today per Wikipedia:

“One Associate Justice to the Supreme Court, 19 judges for the United States courts of appeals and 57 judges for the United States district courts.”

[pnwest]

4. I'm just sick to my stomach at the thought

that this whole thing could get swept away like everything else he’s done.

[babylonsister]

6. Perish the thought!

I'm hoping there are enough righteous people who have a say in this show their outrage and clout, whatever it takes.

[Mr. Ected]

11. Lose the judiciary, lose the country

Legislative and executive branches have partisan elements. The judiciary does not. When a judge subverts the law and acts in accordance with his or her politics alone, which we saw with the USSC in Dobbs and now Cannon's court...we have lost the cornerstone of equity guaranteed in the Constitution.

Honestly, these blasphemers should be summarily hanged. They are not politicians. They are terrorists trying to tear up the Constitution and replace it with whatever suits them at the moment.