Democratic Sens. Ron Wyden (pictured) and Jeff Merkley of Oregon — announced that they would not return a “blue slip” for Ryan Bounds’ nomination to the Senate Judiciary Committee. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Democrats prepare to block another Trump judicial nominee

Two Senate Democrats said Thursday they will block yet another nominee from President Donald Trump to the nation’s powerful appellate courts — inflaming a growing battle between Democratic senators and the White House over judicial candidates.

The White House nominated Ryan Bounds to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday to a seat that became vacant in December. Bounds is currently assistant U.S attorney in Oregon and also served in the George W. Bush administration; he has clerked for the federal judge he would replace, Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain.


But in a letter sent to the White House the same day, Bounds’ two home-state senators — Democrats Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley of Oregon — announced they would not return a “blue slip” for Bounds’ nomination to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The panel generally does not proceed with a confirmation hearing for judicial nominees without the seal of approval from the home-state senators, which is done by sending a blue slip back to the committee.

Wyden and Merkley stressed in the letter, addressed to White House counsel Don McGahn, that they had already told the administration they would not greenlight any candidate that had not been approved by a bipartisan judicial selection committee in the state.

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“Unfortunately, it is now apparent that you never intended to allow our longstanding process to play out,” the Democrats wrote to McGahn in the letter, obtained by POLITICO. “Instead, you have demonstrated that you were only interested in our input if we were willing to preapprove your preferred nominee.”

“Disregarding this Oregon tradition returns us to the days of nepotism and patronage that harmed our courts and placed unfit judges on the bench,” Wyden and Merkley added. “The judicial selection process is not a rubber stamp, and the insinuation that our offices were purposely delaying the process is an indication of the partisanship with which you are pursuing this nomination.”

Another Democratic senator, Al Franken of Minnesota, said earlier this week he would not return a blue slip for a circuit court nominee from his home state: David Stras for the 8th Circuit. The moves from Democrats will test the long-standing Senate blue-slip tradition, which has allowed senators virtual veto power over nominees from their home state.

Several key Senate Republicans, including Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), have suggested that the blue-slip policy is more appropriate for district court nominees rather than appellate picks, whose courts span multiple states and wield considerably more influence.

Other Democrats have returned blue slips for key circuit court nominees, including 6th Circuit nominee Joan Larsen of Michigan and 7th Circuit nominee Amy Coney Barrett of Indiana, who had their confirmation hearings this week.