The Federal Judiciary and the Clinton Administration: A Potential for Ideological Change
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15763/issn.2374-7781.1993.14.0.267-288Abstract
After twelve years of Republican control of the executive branch, President Clinton is inheriting a judicial branch in which seventy percent of all judges have been appointed by Presidents Reagan and Bush. By all accounts, the cohort of judges appointed by Reagan and Bush has resulted in conservative decisions. The ability of President Clinton to reverse this trend is examined here by focusing on four factors: Clinton’s commitment to make ideologically-based appointments; the number of appointments Clinton will be able to make; Clinton’s political clout; and the judicial climate Clinton inherited. It concludes that Clinton will be able to appoint a substantial percentage of the federal judiciary in a first term of office, allowing him to have a sizeable impact on the future direction of the federal judiciary.References
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