Bush’s Judiciary Pulls U.S. Courts Rightward

The U.S. judiciary has been transformed by the Bush Administration, which has appointed younger and more ideological conservative judges than any president in decades, accounting for over one-third of the entire federal judiciary, half of whom are members of the conservaqtive Federalist Society. (NYT) The review article notes that along with judges appointed by Presidents Reagan and Bush Sr., 62% of the bench is Republican-appointed, up from 50% in 2000, and they control 10 of the 13 circuit courts. The appeals courts decide tens of thousands of cases a year, whereas the U.S. Supreme Court reviews only 75 cases/year, half its load from 30 years ago.