The Senate on Tuesday evening confirmed U.S. District Court Judge Michelle Childs for seat on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, generally considered the most important court in the nation other than the Supreme Court. Childs, and the circumstances of her nomination and confirmation, provide a good tour of how out of whack the judicial nomination process has become.
Childs was one of the final candidates to be considered by President Joe Biden for the Supreme Court vacancy that eventually went to Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Childs had strong support from House Majority Whip (and famous Biden endorser) James Clyburn, as well as from Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. Both are from South Carolina, where Childs went to high school and law school, and where her district court seat was located.
But Childs probably never had a real chance at the Supreme Court. Not because she is probably more moderate than Jackson, but because of one crucial fact: Childs was born in 1966, while Jackson was born in 1970.
