White House Sneaks in a New Batch of Justice System Nominations

With much of the focus in Washington, D.C., on efforts to get the Senate to pass a health care bill, among other issues, the White House submitted a list of nominations that included federal judge and U.S. attorney appointments.

The surprise list included:

• Kurt G. Alme, of Montana, to be United States attorney for the District of Montana for the term of four years; vice Michael W. Cotter, resigned.
• Annemarie Carney Axon, of Alabama, to be United States district judge for the Northern District of Alabama; vice Sharon Lovelace Blackburn, retired.
• Liles Clifton Burke, of Alabama, to be United States district judge for the Northern District of Alabama; vice C. Lynwood Smith, retired.
• Donald Q. Cochran, Jr., of Tennessee, to be United States attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee for the term of four years; vice David Rivera, resigned.
• Russell M. Coleman, of Kentucky, to be United States attorney for the Western District of Kentucky for the term of four years; vice David J. Hale, resigned.
• Peter E. Deegan, Jr. of Iowa, to be United States attorney for the Northern District of Iowa for the term of four years; vice Kevin W. Techau, resigned.
• J. Cody Hiland, of Arkansas, to be United States attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas for the term of four years; vice Christopher R. Thyer, resigned.
• Marc Krickbaum, of Iowa, to be United States attorney for the Southern District of Iowa for the term of four years; vice Nicholas A. Klinefeldt, resigned.
• Brian J. Kuester, of Oklahoma, to be United States attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma for the term of four years; vice Mark F. Green, resigned.
• R. Trent Shores, of Oklahoma, to be United States attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma for the term of four years; vice Danny Chappelle Williams, Sr., resigned.

While Democrats have put up every possible roadblock for the president’s nominations, those he has appointed to fill positions within the Department of Justice and the federal judiciary signal his continued effort to remake the American justice system with a strong conservative bent. {eoa}