“We’re going to continue to move these nominations forward,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on the floor prior to the votes. | Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo Congress Senate confirms 9 more judicial nominees

The Senate on Wednesday confirmed nine more of President Donald Trump’s judicial nominees to the federal bench.

The judicial confirmations come as Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has called for the Senate to confirm 19 judges before it leaves Washington for a monthlong recess at the end of this week. The latest package of nominees also signals the Republican-controlled Senate is now turning its attention to the confirmation of district judges, after initially focusing on filling circuit court vacancies.


“We’re going to continue to move these nominations forward,” McConnell said on the floor prior to the votes. “For too long, fairly uncontroversial judicial nominees just like these have been held up and delayed by our Democratic colleagues.”

McConnell is well-known for blocking Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland from getting a hearing.

Three of the district court nominees — Karin Immergut for the District of Oregon, John Milton Younge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Mary M. Rowland for the Northern District of Illinois — were confirmed by voice vote.

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In addition, the Senate confirmed Mark Pittman to the Northern District of Texas, Jeffrey Brown to the Southern District of Texas, Brantley Starr to the Northern District of Texas, Martha Pacold to the Northern District of Illinois, Jason Pulliam to the Western District of Texas and William Stickman IV to be the Western District of Pennsylvania.

In addition to confirming nine judicial nominees, the Senate also confirmed Kelly Craft to become U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

The latest confirmations also highlight the impact of a recent Senate rules change intended to speed the confirmation process for Trump judicial nominees. McConnell invoked the so-called nuclear option to cut down debate time for lower court nominees.

