Looks Like Even Though He was Voted out of the Senate Judicial Committe by a vote of 12-7…The Nomination of Louis Butler was Returned To President Obama!
From The Very Right Wing…Point of Law Website
Who Got Their Info From The Washington Post
“In a flurry of mostly overlooked action, the Senate on December 24 confirmed a slew of President Obama’s nominees on a single “en bloc” vote. Included in the list (starting here in The Congressional Record’s Daily Digest) was David Strickland, the former trial lawyer lobbyist named administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (See this Dec. 9 post on the nomination of Strickland, who has a Senate Commerce staffer bears great responsibility for the excesses of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act.)
Notable was the Senate’s decision to return six nominees to the White House, a sign of major political opposition to their confirmation. The Washington Post’s Federal Eye blog reported the high-profile nominees to the Justice Department the Senate decided against approving: “Dawn E. Johnsen, nominated to oversee the Office of Legal Counsel; Mary L. Smith, tapped to head the Tax Division; and Christopher H. Schroeder, nominated as assistant attorney general for legal policy.”
The most controversial rejected nominee — at least in civil justice reform circles — was Louis Butler, put forward by President Obama to be U.S. District Court Judge for the Western District of Wisconsin. … Appointed by Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle to the court, Butler lost a 2008 election seeking to win a full term on the court. Conservative activist groups organized against his confirmation, and The Wall Street Journal prominently editorialized against him.
The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 12-7 to confirm Butler in early December over strenous objection by Republican committee members, Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama and John Cornyn of Texas.”
President Obama could withdraw the nominations or return them to the Senate. Butler was certainly vigorously supported by his two home-state Senators who serve on the Judiciary Committee, Sens. Feingold and Kohl. The President could also make recess appointments, but that rarely makes sense for judicial nominees with otherwise lifetime appointments; they could only serve until the end of the current Congress.”
Looks like The Haters Won This Round.
UPDATE!! THE JOURNAL SENTINEL HAS FINALLY REPORTED ON THIS!
They report it’s business as usual by the “just say no” GOP !
All of us who are concerned for peace and triumph of reason and justice must be keenly aware how small an influence reason and honest good will exert upon events in the political field. ~Albert Einstein
Sad but true. . . .
This is a shame. Louis Butler deserved a seat on the federal bench.
No, he deserved another term on the Wisconsin Supreme Court
Well that kinda goes without saying, at least in my opinion.
Your right… Even though the guy couldn’t win an election to get on the bench or even retain the seat…. He deserves to be there…. And what’s up with the whole HATERS thing???? You’re crackin’ me up over here!!!! Who’s the crackpot???
E,
As a lawyer, the reasoning behind a decision is more important than a particular result. Although I generally vote for conservatives, I supported Butler because the qualty of his work product. His decisions were always well-reasoned, well-written and well-researched. You could disagree with them but at least you know where the disagreement would be.
Frankly, I prefer competence over politics. Butler’s replacement lacked the qualifications to be hired at most major firms in the State. Firms aren’t exactly beating down the door to hire graduates of fourth tier schools. So why should the Wisconsin tax payer?
As a circuit court judge, Gableman made some laughable errors with respect to interpreation of insurance contracts. I
But now, as a Justice, he is resorting to using analogies instead of law in his opinions. See Liberty Mut. v. Plastics. And this is from someone who claimed that he was a textualist.
Frankly, he is an embarrasment to the court and to conservatives. The conservatives used to be represented by justice Sykes and Wilcox, who were extremly apt justices. We since lost Sykes to a promotion (7th cir) and Wilcox to retirement. But now we have Gableman, Prosser, and Roggensack who are mental lightweights. (I’m still reserving judgment on Ziegler as she has shown some flashes).
But heck, we can make any case political. And, Butler took the fall for two of his decisions-Lead paint and Med Mal caps.
E, let’s not forget Butler won a majority of votes from the counties that make up the Western District of Wisconsin, so clearly the voters in those counties don’t have a problem with Louis Butler’s judicial philosophy.
Zach, I’ve noted that before as well. But I don’t think the majority of voters are familiar with any particular Justice’s philosophy. I would wager that most people who condemn a particular decision have not even read that decision.
What on earth did Butler do that was so objectionable as to warrant his nomination being so vociferously opposed?
Thomas and Ferdon.
It is to be a “hater” now to reject anything that gets the Obama seal of approval? Wow, weren’t you guys complaining about that kind of supposed rhetoric from the last administration?
I’m not sure why Butler deserves anything that you guys say he does. Doesn’t it say something that his nomination was so strenuously objected, while a slew of other nominees were approved?
Speaking of the ones approved… “David Strickland, the former trial lawyer lobbyist named administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration”… I THOUGHT OBAMA WASN’T GOING TO HAVE LOBBYISTS IN HIS ADMINISTRATION?!
In November 2007, Barack Obama proclaimed that lobbyists “won’t find a job in my White House.”
Forgotmyscreenname,
I’m not sure that it makes them a “hater” but it does expose them to be ignorant. So what does it say when Senator Sessions and Senator Cronyn are objecting? I very much doubt that they have read a single Wisconsin State Supreme court decision, whether that decision was written by Butler or someone else.
I would submit that if they are going to criticize Butler’s application of Wisconsin law, they should be able to distinguish the Thomas case (Lead Paint) from the Collins (DES drugs) case. Their inability to do so, reveals them as partisan hacks who are looking for talking points instead of results.
Finally, I note that the Western District is a trial court level. In other words, if there is an objection to Butler’s nomination it should be based on his record as a trial court judge rather than his service in a reviewing court. Butler was elected Milwaukee Circuit court Branch 9, and widely recognized as an excellent trial court judge during his tenor. But hey, maybe Wisconsin Should appoint a lesser qualified individual to the Western District because a Texan politician is attempting to score cheap political points.
And perhaps you agree. To that end, I ask who should be appointed to the Western District and why do you feel they are more qualified than Butler?