WASHINGTON, May 9 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush on Friday continued his push for a conservative federal bench as the Senate leadership proposed changes to the rules permitting filibusters like that which Democrats have undertaken to block confirmation of some judicial nominees.
"The obstructionist tactics of a small group of senators are setting a pattern that threatens judicial independence," Bush said.
Bush made his remarks in the White House Rose Garden two years after he delivered the names of 11 judicial nominees to Capitol Hill for approval. Since then it has been a bitter fight between Senate Democrats and the White House over the president's choices amid what Bush has called a crisis in the judiciary as vacancies remain on the federal bench.
"Some senators have tried to force nominees to take positions on controversial issues before they even take the bench. This is contrary to the constitutional design of a separate and independent judicial branch," Bush said.
The president spoke about his struggle to get his nominees through Congress two hours before he boarded Air Force One heading for Columbia, S.C., where he was set to deliver the commencement address at the University of South Carolina and receive an honorary law degree.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., proposed reforming the filibuster rules so that it would no longer be necessary to overcome a 60-vote barrier before senators consent to a nomination. Frist's amendment to the Senate rules would make it easier to shut off debate and proceed to a vote.
Democrats chose to filibuster Bush nominee Miguel Estrada. Bush picked Estrada last year to sit on the nation's second-highest court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, but Democrats have complained they want more information about Estrada's legal philosophies.
Democrats vowed the filibuster until they received answers to the questions they had about the Washington attorney. They said Estrada refused to answer questions on the death penalty, a woman's right to choose and environmental protection.
Democrats accused Estrada of having too little experience to serve on the circuit court. Bush called Estrada, a Honduran immigrant and graduate of Harvard Law School, an example of what makes the United States "so profound and so hopeful and so promising."
The White House has maintained that the Senate has a constitutional responsibility to hold an up-or-down vote on nominees within a reasonable amount of time. Bush said lawmakers were holding Estrada to a double standard and vowed to stand by his nominee's side until he is sworn in as a judge.
Democrats have accused the Bush White House of choosing judges who will take their conservative views into the courtroom.
"The federal bench is tipping so far to the right it's going to fall over and crush the values Americans cherish like choice, civil rights, public education and worker protection," said Terry McAuliffe, Democratic National Committee chairman.
McAuliffe pointed to nominees such as Estrada, Pricilla Owen, Carolyn Kuhl and Charles Pickering as examples. Democrats opposed Pickering, saying that he is longtime opponent of civil rights protections and once fought for a constitutional amendment to ban abortion. Pickering also once authored an article as a law student that described how states could improve laws that ban interracial marriage.
White House official say there is a 12 percent vacancy rate on the U.S. Court of Appeals. During Bush's first two years in office, 53 percent of appeals court nominees have been confirmed compared to 90 percent during the same periods for the last three presidents. The president has submitted the names of 42 judges for the federal bench, of which 18 are awaiting a Senate vote. Eight of those, the White House said, have been on hold for more than a year.
Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle disagreed. In a statement released from his office, he said that that the Senate has confirmed 124 of the administration's judicial nominees, rejecting two, for a 98.4 percent confirmation rate.
"Democrats have confirmed more judges for President Bush than Republicans confirmed for President Reagan in his first term. And the vacancy rate in the federal courts is at its lowest point in 13 years. The process is not broken. To the contrary, it is working efficiently. And if it ain't broke, don't fix it," Daschle said.
Last year, Bush called on federal judges to give the president one year's notice of their intention to retire, whenever possible. He proposed that presidents submit a nomination to the U.S. Senate within 180 days of receiving notice of a federal court vacancy or a judge's intention to retire.
He called on the Senate Judiciary Committee to commit to holding a hearing within 90 days of receiving a nomination to ensure that nominees are promptly considered. And he asked the full Senate to commit to an up-or-down floor vote on each nominee no later than 180 days after the nomination is submitted. So far, no action has been taken on his proposal.