The Republican led Senate Judiciary Committee is considering splitting the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, due its purported liberal bias.
Conservatives have long been targeting the court, citing its left-leaning judicial activism, the Focus on the Family News Service reported. The court, some say, needs to be better balanced, while others say the breakup would help it deal with the growing number of cases before it.
The court hears appeals from Alaska Arizona, California, Idaho, Hawaii, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Guam and the Marianas Islands.
Bruce Hausknecht, a judicial analyst for the conservative Focus on the Family Action group, said judges on the court told him splitting the court would not eliminate its political differences, adding that they think they would get worse.
Hausknecht said that the court has been “improving” of late, with President Bush appointing some conservative judges to the court, but added that more needs to be done to balance the court ideologically.
The court now has two vacancies and Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pennsylvania, helped push conservative judge Randy Smith’s nomination through the committee by a 10-8 vote. Smiths’ nomination now must go to the Senate where Democrats may try to shoot it down by filibuster.
But conservative Judge William Meyers’ nomination has not been as lucky. He has been waiting for a vote from the committee since 2003.
Hautknecht said at least two judges on the court appointed by President Carter are nearing retirement, giving conservatives hope that their seats could soon be filled by new Bush appointees.
