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May 17, 2008 1:41 pm US/Mountain
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White House Moves On Colorado Judgeships
DENVER (CBS4) ―
CBS4Denver has learned the White House has decided on three persons President Bush is likely to chose to fill vacancies on the U.S. District Court for Colorado.
They are Greg Goldberg, a partner in a large Denver law firm; Christine Arguello, senior associate counsel of the University of Colorado, and Phil Brimmer, a federal prosecutor in Denver.
The new development occurred amidst consternation of many Colorado lawyers that the President was not acting quickly enough to fill three judgeships on the only federal trial court in the state.
The lawyers are anxious because they say the wheels of justice in the court are turning too slowly.
They say the vacancies are leaving the current judges with so much work that they are having to take too long to dispose of cases.
The chief of staff for Sen. Wayne Allard, Sean Conway, told CBS4Denver on Saturday the White House notified Allard late Friday of the three choices.
Conway said the FBI is beginning background checks on them. The President is believed likely to nominate Goldberg, Arguello and Brimmer after the checks are finished in a few weeks.
Goldberg is a former federal prosecutor in Denver and Arguello formerly was a top lawyer in the Colorado attorney general's office.
Goldberg and Brimmer are Republicans. Arguello is a Democrat.
Republican Allard, the state's senior senator, earlier this year recommended all three to the President. Democrat U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar last month recommended Goldberg and Arguello, plus Lael Elisabeth Montgomery, a state district judge in Boulder, who reportedly is not affiliated with a political party.
The Democrat-controlled U.S. Senate must confirm Republican Bush's nominees.
A spokeswoman for Salazar said Friday he "is still pushing his three names" for confirmation. Because of that, Salazar could make it difficult or impossible for Brimmer to be confirmed.
The vacancies are the result of two judges, Lewis Babcock and Walker Miller, cutting back on their workload a few weeks ago by becoming senior judges and of the January death of Judge Phillip Figa.
The court is authorized by Congress to have seven full time judges. It now has five full time judges and five senior judges, who handle as many or as few cases as they want.
Some persons close to the situation fear it is already too late this year to get the vacancies filled before senators recess for this summer's political conventions and this fall's election campaigns.
Conway told CBS4Denver, "Sen. Allard remains optimistic there remains time to have all three vacancies filled."
Despite the state's considerable population growth since 1984, that is the last year Congress authorized an additional judge for the court, Chief Judge Edward Nottingham has said.
The policy-making body of the federal court system has recommended to Congress that the court needs even two judges in order to have enough for its caseload.
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