Getchell Withdraws 4th Circuit Nomination
E. Duncan Getchell Jr. has withdrawn his name for a seat on the Richmond, Va.-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, citing a lack of support from the Senate Democratic leadership.
Getchell’s September nomination proved controversial because his name was not on a list of five potential nominees drawn up by Virginia’s two U.S. senators, the Washington Post reports. The withdrawal complicates efforts to fill five vacancies on the court once known for its conservatism. With the vacancies, the court is evenly split between five Republican and five Democratic appointees.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said in a statement that Getchell’s nomination “seemed to be an effort to pick a political fight rather than a nominee the Senate could confirm to fill a vacancy on the 4th Circuit,” Legal Times reports. Getchell is chair of the appellate practice group at McGuireWoods.
Glenn Sugameli, senior legislative counsel for Earthjustice, made a similar point in a press release, but used stronger language. “President Bush decided to use Getchell and other pending circuit court nominees as political pawns who were chosen because they will not be confirmed by the Senate,” he said. “By deliberately creating artificial vacancies, President Bush is inflaming his right-wing base.”
