Lawrence One Step Closer To Becoming Federal Judge

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday cleared the nomination of federal Magistrate William Lawrence to fill the federal district court judge position vacated by John Tender, who recently joined the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. According to the Star's Maureen Groppe, full Senate action on Lawrence's confirmation is expected next month. Quoting Sen. Richard Lugar, Groppe writes:

"This selection was the product of a bipartisan process and reflective of the importance of finding highly qualified federal judges to carry forward the tradition of fair, principled and collegial leadership," Lugar said at Lawrence's May 1 confirmation hearing.

[Sen. Evan] Bayh praised Lawrence's intelligence, honor and "highest standards of judicial temperament."

In the last year of a president's term in office, it is often touch-and-go when it comes to federal judicial confirmations. The Demoratic-controlled Senate, in this case, has an incentive to stall as many judicial nominees as possible in hopes that their party will win the presidency this fall and get to make those judicial appointments. Surprisingly, Judge Tinder's nomination to the Court of Appeals sailed through the Senate while many other Court of Appeals nominees languish on the Senate's calendar.