(Photo
by
Melina
Mara/The
Washington
Post)
It
was
recently
revealed
that
two
Democratic
appointees
to
the
federal
bench
—
Max
O.
Cogburn
Jr.
and
Algenon
L.
Marbley
—
rescinded
their
decisions
to
move
to
senior
status
in
the
wake
of
Donald
Trump’s
2024
election
victory.
This
means
those
are
two
fewer
seats
Trump
will
get
to
fill
with
Federalist
Society
acolytes.
Which,
given
the
political
and
judicial
landscape
that
exists
in
2024,
is
a
logical
decision.
But
Senator
Mitch
McConnell
is
pretty
pissed
about
it.
As
reported
by
The
Hill,
McConnell
went
off
on
the
jurists
for
their
choice.
McConnell
called
the
unusual
decisions
to
forgo
retirement
following
Trump’s
sweeping
victory
last
month
a
“partisan”
gambit
that
would
undermine
the
integrity
of
federal
courts.“They
rolled
the
dice
that
a
Democrat
could
replace
them,
and
now
that
he
won’t,
they’re
changing
their
plans
to
keep
a
Republican
from
doing
it,”
McConnell
said
on
the
Senate
floor.“It’s
a
brazen
admission.
And
the
incoming
administration
would
be
wise
to
explore
all
available
recusal
options
with
these
judges,
because
it’s
clear
now
that
they
have
a
political
finger
on
the
scale,”
he
said.“This
sort
of
partisan
behavior
undermines
the
integrity
of
the
judiciary.
It
exposes
bold
Democratic
blue
where
there
should
only
be
black
robes,”
McConnell
warned.
Pardon
me
while
I
roll
my
eyes
so
hard.
Seriously
—
the
fucking
gall
of
this
guy!
Because
in
March
of
2020,
McConnell
himself
reportedly
“initiated
outreach
in
an
effort
to
heighten
awareness
among
judges
nominated
by
Presidents
Ronald
Reagan,
George
Bush
and
George
W.
Bush
that
making
the
change
now
would
be
advantageous.”
I
guess
McConnell
thinks
only
*he*
should
be
able
to
manipulate
judicial
retirements
to
maximize
his
ideological
preferences.
While
we’re
on
the
subject
of
“partisan
behavior”
that
“undermines
the
integrity
of
the
judiciary,”
let’s
talk
about
stolen
Supreme
Court
seats,
shall
we?
Remember,
this
is
the
guy
who
made
history
by
keeping
the
seat
of
the
late
Justice
Antonin
Scalia
vacant
for
a
year
just
so
a
Democrat
(Barack
Obama)
wouldn’t
be
able
to
name
his
replacement.
It
was
obvious
from
jump
that
his
stated
justification
for
the
unprecedented
move
(because
there
was
an
election
happening
nine
months
later)
was
merely
an
excuse
for
a
blatant
power
play.
But
when
McConnell
turned
around
and
DID
THE
EXACT
OPPOSITE
when
Ruth
Bader
Ginsburg
died
six
WEEKS
before
the
2020
election,
his
true
motives
became
undeniable.
So
spare
me
the
histrionics.
Judges
Cogburn
and
Marbley
and
merely
playing
the
game
McConnell
created.
Good
on
them
for
seeing
the
reality
of
the
situation.
Earlier:
Federal
Judges
Declaring
Backsies
On
Retirement
Since
Trump
Won
The
Election
Mitch
McConnell
Urges
Judges
To
Make
Way
For
Younger,
Fitter
Reactionaries
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
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or
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@Kathryn1 or
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@[email protected].