J. Scott Applewhite / AP
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., joined at rear by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., tells reporters that he has spoken to President Donald Trump and other leaders about the Alabama Senate race and the allegations of sexual misconduct against GOP candidate Roy Moore, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2017. McConnell and other Republicans have called for Moore to step aside.
Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2017 | 1 a.m.
WASHINGTON — The pace of confirmations for President Donald Trump's judicial nominees has quickly become a source of pride for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and fellow Republicans while Democrats are ruing the day they changed the rules to make it easier to fast-track court picks.
Nine confirmations in little more than a month have lifted the total number of judges confirmed during the Trump presidency to 16.
Along with the major prize — Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch — Trump can say he got more appellate court justices confirmed at this date in his presidency than any predecessor since Republican Richard Nixon.
It's a far cry from a few months ago when the Judicial Crisis Network, a conservative advocacy group, was preparing an ad campaign pushing McConnell to get more confirmations.
