U.S. District Court of California, Southern District
When the Republican-controlled Senate Judiciary Committee spurned several of President Clinton's choices to fill a vacancy in the Southern District of California, Sen. Diane Feinstein made them an offer they could not refuse:
Thomas J. Whelan, 59, presiding judge of the Superior Court of San Diego County.
First off, Whelan is one of the most respected and well-liked members of the legal community. Secondly, his credentials were a cinch to impress committ... (continued)