Partisanship has infected the judicial system. But rarely is it this blatant.
And now two federal judges just hit Donald Trump with a devastating loss.
Here’s a fresh rewrite with all quotes unchanged:
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell took aim Monday at two federal judges who reversed their retirement plans following former President Trump’s re-election in November.
McConnell, R-Ky., criticized what he described as “partisan Democrat district judges” for their decision to “unretire” after “the American people voted to fire Democrats last month.”
“Looking to history, only two judges have ever unretired after a presidential election. One Democrat in 2004 and one Republican in 2009. But now, in just a matter of weeks, Democrats have already met that all-time record. It’s hard to conclude that this is anything other than open partisanship,” McConnell remarked during a Senate floor speech.
The controversy centers on U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley of Ohio and U.S. District Judge Max Cogburn of North Carolina.
Both judges had announced plans to step down and assume senior status before the election, allowing them to take reduced caseloads while awaiting replacements.
However, after President Biden failed to nominate their successors before the election results, both judges decided to rescind their retirement plans.
In mid-November, Judge Marbley, who was appointed by President Clinton, informed Biden of his decision to stay on the bench, stating, “I have therefore decided to remain on active status and carry out the full duties and obligations of the office.”
Similarly, Judge Cogburn, a President Obama appointee, also reversed his retirement plans, as reported by *Reuters*.
McConnell pointed to their decisions as evidence of partisan motivations, describing it as “a political finger on the scale.” He urged the incoming Trump administration to “explore all available recusal options with these judges.”
McConnell also issued a warning to other judges who might consider similar moves, emphasizing that no circuit court judge has ever reversed a retirement decision following a presidential election.
“Never before has a circuit judge unretired after a presidential election. It’s literally unprecedented. And to create such a precedent would fly in the face of a rare bipartisan compromise on the disposition of these vacancies,” McConnell stated.
His remarks referred to a recent bipartisan agreement on judicial nominations. In this deal, Republicans agreed to allow Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to hold votes on nine of Biden’s district court nominees before Thanksgiving.
In return, Democrats agreed to withdraw four circuit court nominees who lacked the votes for confirmation, enabling Trump to fill those vacancies after taking office in January.
A Democratic source, however, told Fox News Digital that only two of the circuit court vacancies are guaranteed, while the other two judges may decide not to retire after all.
McConnell didn’t mince words about potential consequences, warning that “significant ethics complaints” could follow if any judges reversed their retirement plans simply because Trump had won re-election.
“As I repeatedly warned the judiciary in other matters, if you play political games, expect political prizes. So let’s hope these judges do the right thing and enjoy their well-earned retirement and leave the politics to the political branches,” McConnell concluded.
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