Steps to Supreme Court Judge Nomination
It isn’t exactly a walk in the park to nominate a Supreme Court judge, the highest position in the U.S. judiciary.
That’s why we’re going to talk about how a judge nomination goes! Below are the standard procedures on nominating and confirming a Supreme Court judge.
1. The President’s selection
First step would be based on the President’s consideration on who to nominate. Then, investigation follows. The FBI would examine the person’s background, if whether or not that person’s been involved in any sort of anomaly. This would ensure that the person wouldn’t have any embarrassing stories which would tarnish his or her reputation.
2. The Senate’s Judiciary Committee
The Senate has its own Judiciary Committee, which—after prior investigations—will do investigations themselves. The nominee is then asked to fill out a questionnaire. The American Bar Association will voice out their thoughts on if the nominee is “qualified,” “not qualified,” or “well-qualified.”
The Judiciary Committee will then hold hearings. Hearings are public and would normally last about four days. The Administration often trains nominees to avoid any sort of embarrassment during the whole hearing process.
After the hearing, the Committee will then vote on whether or not the nominee should proceed and be recommended to the senate. The recommendation may either be favorable, negative, or with no recommendation.
3. The Senate Itself
The final step of the nomination is handled by the Senate. It is up to the Majority Leader to have the nomination push through. There is no time limit to the debate but the Minority and Majority leaders may agree upon how long the debate may last.
If the nominee passes, he or she will be sworn into the position of Supreme Court Judge. The new Judge takes two oaths: The Constitutional oath and a judicial oath.
So if ever you’d be asked on how a Supreme Court judge is selected, you already know the answer by now.
For more information on the entire process, follow this link.