California district court nominees questioned in race to confirmation

Two California district court nominees, picked by President Joe Biden, were peppered with questions by U.S. Sen. John N. Kennedy, R-Louisiana, during a Senate Judiciary Committee nomination hearing Wednesday as Democrats race to confirm judges by the end of the year.

Republicans will take control of the Senate on Jan. 3, 2025, in the wake of their victories in the Nov. 5 elections, ending a four-year run in which Democrats controlled the chamber by a narrow majority.

Kennedy focused on articles written by U.S. Magistrate Judge Benjamin J. Cheeks, a nominee for a Southern District of California vacancy, and podcast comments by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Serena R. Murillo, a nominee for a Central District vacancy, suggesting they are left-wing extremists.

He asked several questions of Cheeks, a Black former prosecutor who spent more than a decade as a criminal defense attorney being he was appointed as a federal magistrate judge in July. Kennedy quoted excerpts of Cheeks' articles about race relations, demonstrations following the murder of George Floyd and illegal immigration.

"Needless to say, I have a guarded opinion about the police," Cheeks wrote in a 2019 article about raising his young sons, who are both Black and Hispanic. "How do I teach my sons to respect them and fear them at the same time? ... Do some of them view Black males as more dangerous than others? I think so."

Cheeks, while a criminal defense attorney, also wrote that immigrants arrested for crossing the border illegally should be released even though "technically, the law was broken. But these particular defendants - poor, hungry, hardworking and not dangerous - deserve a pass from prosecution."

He responded to Kennedy by saying the article was written in his capacity as an advocate, not the judge he has since become. "I do not mean it now," Cheeks said.

The Republican senator didn't buy it. "You've taken a lot of radical positions, judge," Kennedy told him. "And you can't make this cat walk backwards."

Cheeks defended the articles and answered yes to a query from U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler, D-CA, about whether he would apply federal law and the Constitution fairly. "Absolutely, and I have been doing so as a magistrate judge ever since I took the bench," he said.

Kennedy accused Murillo, a former Los Angeles County prosecutor who has been a state judge since 2015, of favoring quotas.

Murillo denied Kennedy's allegation. "I have never advocated on behalf of quotas," she said, adding that diversity on the bench "builds public confidence in those institutions."

"Good try, judge," Kennedy replied in a mocking tone. "Good try."

Only three senators asked questions during the lightly attended hearing. While Republicans on the committee are unlikely to support either nominee, the most important thing for Democrats was holding the nomination hearing so the committee can hold votes in December and advance the judges to the Senate floor.

San Diego County Superior Court Judge Rebecca S. Kanter, who was nominated for a Southern District vacancy in January, did not appear at the hearing, renewing questions about whether Democrats will even try to move her nomination forward with time running out.

Three of Biden's other district court nominees - Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Anne Hwang and State Bar Court Judge Cynthia Valenzuela Dixon, for the Central District; and Alameda County Superior Court Judge Noel Wise for the Northern District - are awaiting final votes on the Senate floor.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer filed for cloture on all three of those nominees on Monday. Senate Republican Leader John Thune, R-SD, forced roll call votes on the move - which is usually done with unanimous consent - to try to slow down the process.

President-elect Donald Trump has urged all Republican senators to oppose Biden's judicial nominees during the lame duck session.

Democrats still have enough votes to confirm nominees. On Wednesday, Amir H. Ali was confirmed 50-49 as a district court judge in the District of Columbia.

Vice President Kamala Harris has left for a vacation in Hawaii so she will not be available to break ties, as she has done several times on disputed nominees during her term. That may postpone some final Senate floor votes until her return.