{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20131213061515/http://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-statement-on-senate-use-of-constitutional-option-to-confirm-federal-judicial-nominees", "Blumenthal Statement On Senate Use Of Constitutional Option To Confirm Federal Judicial Nominees", "2013-11-21", "2013", "2013-11", "Democrat", "House", "CT", "Richard Blumenthal", "B001277", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "The Senate Rule Change, Or So-Called \u201cConstitutional Option,\u201d Will End Longest Period Of High-Rate Vacancy At Federal District, Appellate Court Level In 35 Years\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, November 21, 2013\n\t\t\t(Washington, DC) \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) issued a statement after the Senate voted 52-48 to change its rules with regard to confirming federal judicial nominees. The rule change, or so called \u201cconstitutional option,\u201d lowers the vote threshold to confirm judicial nominees from 60 to 51. Blumenthal voted for the rule change, which will end the longest period of high-rate\u00a0vacancy at the federal district and appellate court level in 35 years.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\n\u201cThe historic, profoundly significant step taken today will help make government work better \u2013 and avert a constitutional crisis resulting from some senators\u2019 refusal to consider nominees on their merits. Unprecedented, unacceptable abuse of the filibuster rule has blocked supremely qualified public servants from filling necessary judgeships and positions on the president\u2019s executive team. Many key executive positions and more than 90 judgeships\u00a0are vacant, including one-quarter of the entire D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, because of obstructionist opposition exploiting the 60-vote threshold required simply to have an up-or-down vote on a nominee. Americans want action and this very positive rule change will enable it. With this commonsense change, the Senate will work more like other legislative bodies and as Americans do commonly \u2013 by approving nominees with simple majority, up-or-down votes.\u201d\nEleven percent of the country\u2019s federal district and appellate court benches have remained vacant for four years, the longest period of vacancy in the past 35 years. Throughout the history of the U.S. Congress, there have been 168 filibusters of executive and judicial nominations, and half of them have occurred during the last four and a half years of the Obama Administration.\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\tPress Contact\n\t\t\t\t\tJosh Zembik \u2013\u00a0202-224-6452Josh_Zembik@blumenthal.senate.gov", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20131213061515/http://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-statement-on-senate-use-of-constitutional-option-to-confirm-federal-judicial-nominees"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.359469024464488, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}