This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

A White House pact with Republicans to fill empty judicial vacancies risks unravelling as Senate Democrats voice growing concern about a conservative candidate known for anti-abortion views.



Obama spokesman Jay Carney insisted on Tuesday that his party's anxiety about Michael Boggs, a Georgia state judge picked to serve on the US district court, was misplaced, but acknowledged Boggs was a compromise candidate designed to ease Republican opposition to other nominees.



Before becoming a judge, Boggs was a state senator who supported anti-abortion campaigns, opposed same-sex marriage and backed keeping a Confederate emblem on the state flag – all views that have alarmed progressive Democrats.



“The choice is clear,” Carney told reporters. “Do we work with Republican senators to find a compromise or do we leave the seats vacant? We believe it would be grossly irresponsible to leave those seats vacant.”



But the scale of the challenge became apparent when even Senate majority leader Harry Reid was quoted expressing concern about Boggs



“Unless I have a better explanation. I can’t vote for him," Reid told Buzzfeed in an interview. This is a lifetime appointment. He’s said some things and made some decisions I think are not very good.”



The controversial pick follows a protracted stalemate in Congress over administration appointments, many of which have been blocked for months by Republicans for being too liberal.



Although Senate Democrats changed the rules on filibustering judicial nominations to reduce such deadlock in some cases, they can still be blocked by senators from the state in which they are being nominated to serve under a long-standing “blue slip” tradition which the administration claims is being abused.



“This abuse is a significant constraint on the president's selection of potential nominees and on his ability to quickly pick individuals to fill long term vacancies,” said Carney.



“In the case of Georgia, we have been trying to fill the judicial vacancies for more than three years, and two of the president's nominees were blocked for nearly 11 months.”



As a result, Boggs, was who was first proposed by Georgia Republican senators Saxby Chambliss and John Isakson, was backed by the White House in exchange for Republicans agreeing to fill seven other vacancies in the state.



The administration points to the fact that five of these nominees are women: one who would be the first female district judge in her court and two who would be the first African American lifetime-appointed judges ever in Georgia.



Such appointments may now become vulnerable to a Republican backlash although despite a bumpy confirmation hearing at the judiciary committee on Tuesday, it remains unclear whether enough Democrats are against the appointment to block Boggs in the full Senate.



Reid told Buzzfeed he would consult with other Democrats before taking a final decision on whether to support the nomination.



The White House insisted Boggs was “qualified for the federal bench” and urged Democrats to judge him on his recent record rather than history as a state senator.



“The criticisms of him are not based on his 10-year track record as a state trial and an appellate court judge,” said Carney.



“The president would disagree with an assessment by anyone that reached a conclusion that judge Boggs is not qualified,” he added.



“The president believes he is, or he would have not nominated him, but the president believes that each senator should vote as he or she sees fit.”

