Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey Jr. once again put his own political interests before that of his constituents. This time, Casey is vehemently opposing a qualified candidate for the Court of Appeals on ideological grounds. David Porter, an attorney from Pittsburgh, was nominated by President Trump to sit on the bench for the 3rd circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals. Porter has 23 years of experience in law, and currently practices at the Pittsburgh law firm Buchanan, Ingersoll and Rooney.
Historically, Pennsylvania Senators Casey and Toomey have typically stuck together for judicial nominations and have been able to compromise for the sake of their Commonwealth constituents. With Porter’s nomination, however, Senator Casey is blocking President Trump’s move at full force. Despite Casey’s decline to give the Senate Judiciary Committee his “blue slip,” the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Chuck Grassley, was able to still schedule a hearing for Porter, per the Senate policy on receiving approval from the nominee’s home-state Senators.
Senator Casey, along with his allies in far-left ideological interest groups, oppose David Porter’s nomination strictly based on his Conservative ideology. Groups such as Why Courts Matter PA, have tried to frame Porter as a “right-wing ideologue,” who is incapable of putting his individual political philosophy aside while on the federal bench. After praising his own “bipartisan” work with his Republican colleagues to put judges on the bench, Casey tweeted his opposition to Porter’s nomination, citing that his Conservative views disqualify him:
Instead of working in a bipartisan fashion to put mainstream individuals on the bench, this Administration and the Senate Majority Leader are demanding that the Senate confirm judicial nominees who advocate a hard-right ideology to appease their corporate donors.
— Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) June 6, 2018
Senator Casey’s opposition to a well-qualified Pennsylvania native’s nomination to the Court of Appeals is another political stunt by the senator, in order to effectively block the Trump Administration’s every move, and appease his left-wing donors and colleagues. Casey is gearing up for tough re-election bid, a challenge from Pennsylvania Congressman and Trump-endorsed candidate Lou Barletta.
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