Overview

• The Senate approved Whitney Hermandorfer’s nomination to the xth U.U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by a 46-42 party-line vote, marking the first judicial confirmation of President Trump’s second term.
• Hermandorfer leads the strategic litigation unit in Tennessee’s attorney general’s office and gained appellate experience as a clerk for Justices Samuel Alito, Amy Coney Barrett and Judge Brett Kavanaugh.
• Democrats raised concerns about her limited trial experience and criticized her office’s defense of policies ending birthright citizenship and enforcing Tennessee’s strict abortion ban.
• With about 49 vacancies to fill, the pace of confirmations in Trump’s second term has lagged behind his first term and the early months of President Biden’s tenure.
• Republican leaders plan to advance more nominees through the Judiciary Committee despite narrow margins and unified Democratic opposition.