Senators on Thursday successfully blocked the nomination of a judicial nominee to a district court after he recommended that a biological man who identifies as a transgender woman be transferred to a prison that houses biological women, despite being convicted of a sex crime.
Judge Sarah Netburn’s nomination was blocked from moving forward when Sen. Jon Ossoff voted against her along with other Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee, creating increasingly rare bipartisan opposition.
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Biden suffered a defeat on Thursday when his controversial nominee for attorney general was blocked. (Getty Images)
The 11-10 vote blocked the controversial candidate from moving to the chamber for a confirmation vote.
The vote was particularly significant because it marked the first time that a Biden judicial nominee has ever been defeated in committee. A Republican aide told Fox News Digital, “Democrats have never voted against a Biden judicial nominee in committee before.”
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Netburn came under scrutiny for recommending that biologically male sex offenders be housed with female prisoners. (Senate Judiciary Committee)
The blockage marks a defeat for President Biden, especially as he is on track to fill more vacancies at the Justice Department than former President Trump. Biden reached the milestone of 200 confirmations earlier this year, surpassing Trump at the time. But with multiple recesses this fall, it’s unclear whether he will be able to surpass Trump’s record.
“I have deep concerns about Judge Sarah Netburn’s nomination, particularly her extreme rulings that put women at risk by putting biological men in women’s prisons,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said in remarks before the vote. “And given the volume of letters this committee has received from women’s groups and female inmates, I am not alone in my concerns.”
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Cruz read aloud a letter from a former female inmate. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The Texas senator shared some of the feedback he received with his colleagues, including a letter from a former female inmate, who wrote, “As a former inmate of a California prison, I share my concerns that women’s rights are being disregarded in comparison to the interests of men who identify as women and are housed in women-only facilities.”
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McConnell sharply criticized the nominees’ record. (Associated Press)
Speaking on the Senate floor ahead of the committee vote, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said, “Unfortunately, the red flags in Judge Netburn’s record are not limited to any inappropriate conduct that she actually engaged in.”
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“Judge Netburn did not rule on unopposed motions filed by the families that would have given them the right to participate in the next round of compensation for grieving families,” he said, referring to the families of the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
“They’re saying, ‘I just can’t understand how a magistrate can treat 9/11 families so callously and neglect their duties,'” he continued.
