A federal judge is speaking out after President Joe Biden vetoed a bill that would have added 66 federal judges in two-year waves through 2035.
Had the bill become law, President-elect Trump would have gotten the chance to appoint about two dozen of the 66 new judges, The Hill reported.
Biden seemed to hint at underlying politics as the reason for the veto, noting that some of the new judgeships would be added in areas where U.S. Senators have intentionally held vacant positions open: "Those efforts to hold open vacancies suggest that concerns about judicial economy and caseload are not the true motivating force behind passage of this bill now," Biden stated.
Biden also described the bill as "hurried" and that "key questions in the legislation, especially regarding how the new judgeships are allocated" were left unresolved.
Judge Robert Conrad, the director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts disagreed.
"It is not a bill that was hastily put together. Rather it is the product of careful and detailed analysis which considers primarily the weighted caseload per active judge in each judicial district, while also factoring in the contribution of senior judges, magistrate judges and visiting judges," Conrad said, according to The Hill.
In a letter sent to the president Dec. 16, meant to preempt the veto, Conrad stated "We need judges now" and that the legislation was "necessary to the efficient and effective administration of justice."
