I find it
interesting that the Ninth Circuit Court is in the news today for two separate
reasons. The first, of course, is the emergency appeal of the restraining order
against President Donald Trump’s immigration executive order. The second reason
is that Alaska’s junior Senator Dan Sullivan is trying to split up the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.
This is not the first time that
Republicans have tried to split this particular court as numerous attempts have
been made over the years and annually during the administration of President
George W. Bush. The attempt to do so has been going on for decades. Even though
the court is “overloaded and overly liberal,” Democrats vote against splitting
it.
Senator Sullivan and Senator
Steve Daines (R-Montana) “have introduced two bills.” The first bill “establishes
a commission to study the appeals court system and find a quick and effective
way to divide up the 9th Circuit’s caseload.” The second bill “would
split the court into two: the 9th Circuit and a newly created 12th
Circuit. The 9th Circuit would include California, Guam, Hawaii and
the Northern Mariana Islands. The new circuit would include Alaska, Arizona,
Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.”
Senator Sullivan claims, “The
population of the Ninth Circuit is nearly 85 percent bigger than the next
largest circuit and covers 40 percent of our country’s land mass.” In addition,
“It is simply too large, its scope is too wide, and it has long passed its
ability to provide equal access to justice under the law.” It also has a lot of
cases concerning immigration, endangered species, and public land.
The Senator once clerked for the
Ninth Circuit, so he knows from first-hand knowledge the difficulties of
working with the overload. Even though either bill has a slim chance of passing
the Senate, President Donald Trump can still change the makeup of the court by
nominating conservatives to fill the four vacancies on the court.
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