Here comes the JUDGES!!!! (Maybe)

After Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced last week that he would take bold action to end Republican filibusters of 17 federal district court nominees, activists across the country, like you, spoke out in favor of the bold move and called your senators to tell them to end Republicans' blockade of qualified judicial nominees.

Thank you -- the pressure from both the Democratic leadership and Americans willing to speak out is paying off. Late last week, Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell reached an agreement to allow votes on 14 pending district AND circuit court nominees by May 7, with the first seven votes before the end of this month.

The first two votes have already happened, confirming Gina Groh of West Virginia and Michael Fitzgerald of California to federal district courts. But this movement is long overdue, the pace is not quick enough and the question remains: what happens on May 8, after, presumably, these 14 nominees are confirmed?

Even with this deal, far too many seats on our federal courts will still be vacant. President Obama's nominees still face consistent, unprecedented delays. It is absolutely ridiculous that it took such pressure to allow votes on a group of eminently qualified nominees with strong bipartisan support.

We're making undeniable progress but we have still not reached an end of the Republican gridlock.

Prior to the Obama administration, only three district court nominees had been filibustered in the past 60 years. And President Obama's nominees to the federal courts have had to wait on average four times as long for a simple Senate vote as did President Bush's nominees at this point in his presidency.

If Senate Republicans want to show Americans they're serious about doing the work they were elected to do, they should allow votes on the remaining nominees pending on the Senate floor and additional nominees who will be reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee in the coming months.

Thanks again for your activism, and for your support. We'll continue to keep you updated about our effort to end the GOP's partisan obstruction and let you know how you can help.