Democrats’ Numbers Problem

President Biden and Senate Democrats have a numbers problem.

With Republicans controlling the House — and showing little interest in bipartisan legislation there — the appointment of judges is one of the few ways that Biden can get something done on Capitol Hill: The Senate confirms federal judges, and the Democrats narrowly control the Senate.

But Senator Dianne Feinstein’s failing health has frozen the Senate Judiciary Committee, the group that must consider any judicial nominees before the full Senate votes on them. Feinstein, who’s 89 and has represented California since 1992, has been ill with shingles since February. She has also been struggling with her ability to hold conversations and the deterioration of her short term memory for more than a year. It is unclear when she will return to the Senate.

Biden and other Democrats had hoped for the appointment of judges — both to federal trial courts (known as District Courts) and to appeals courts (known as Circuit Courts) — to be a major accomplishment this year. That plan is now in doubt because Democrats do not have the votes to confirm judges without Feinstein.

Instead, about 20 Biden nominees are in limbo, and 9 percent of District Court and Circuit Court judgeships remain vacant. Among Biden’s unconfirmed nominees: Mónica Ramírez Almadani, a civil rights lawyer; Robert Kirsch, a former prosecutor who focused on white collar crime; and Kato Crews, an expert in labor law.

Trump’s record

Until recently, Republicans often put more emphasis on appointing judges than Democrats did. That focus has contributed to conservative policy victories, with federal courts stymying liberal policies on climate change, immigration and workers’ rights.

The past few weeks have brought another such issue — abortion. Republican-appointed judges have issued rulings that would restrict the distribution of pills used to end pregnancies, an increasingly important part of abortion practice. The Supreme Court has paused the effect of those rulings through Friday while it considers the case.

Donald Trump, with help from Mitch McConnell and other Senate Republicans, was especially aggressive about appointing judges. Trump appointed more federal judges in his four-year term than any other recent president did in his first term:

As a result, Republican appointees held most judgeships on both trial courts and appeals courts when Biden took office. Biden’s fast start to judicial appointments during his first two years narrowed the gap, though. Today, 51 percent of appeals courts judges were appointed by Republicans, 43 percent by Democrats and 6 percent of seats are vacant, according to Russell Wheeler of the Brookings Institution.

To continue their progress, Democrats have tried to replace Feinstein on the Judiciary Committee, but Republicans blocked the switch this week.

Without Feinstein, Democrats have lost their one-vote margin on the committee, causing it to deadlock on nominees rather than advancing them to the Senate floor. Some progressive activists argue that Democratic leaders should try to change Senate rules so that the filibuster could not block a change to the Judiciary Committee membership, but Democrats may not have the votes to pass that change, my colleague Annie Karni, who covers Congress, says.

“Democrats are stuck,” Annie told me, “and they just hope she comes back soon.”

The other solution for Democrats would be Feinstein’s resignation. In that case, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, a Democrat, would replace her, and he has pledged to name a Black woman to fill the seat. Either way, Feinstein has said she will not run for re-election next year, and three high-profile California politicians have announced their candidacies: Representatives Barbara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff.

‘About the nation’

Some Democrats have become increasingly bold about calling for Feinstein’s resignation or at least raising the subject:

• “If this goes on month after month after month, then she’s going to have to make a decision with her family and her friends about what her future holds,” Senator Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, said this week. “This isn’t just about California; it’s also about the nation.”

• “She has been an icon on issues of gun violence and women’s rights, but it has become painfully obvious to many of us in California that she is no longer able to fulfill her duties as she doesn’t have a clear return date,” Representative Ro Khanna, who represents Northern California, said last week.

• “Senator Feinstein is a remarkable American whose contributions to our country are immeasurable,” Representative Dean Phillips of Minnesota tweeted last week. “But I believe it’s now a dereliction of duty to remain in the Senate and a dereliction of duty for those who agree to remain quiet.”

Other Democrats, including Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker, say that Feinstein has earned the right to remain and have suggested that the criticism of her is sexist. “I’ve never seen them go after a man who was sick in the Senate in that way,” Pelosi said.

Feinstein’s defenders are certainly correct that sexism plays a big role in American politics. But the biggest distinguishing feature of the current situation isn’t Feinstein’s sex. She is not the first female member of Congress to serve while old or ill. What makes this case different are the consequences.

No other aging member of Congress in decades, if not longer, has blocked one of his or her political party’s biggest priorities.

But Democrats do not seem to have a solution to their problem.

Related: Some Democrats have also called for an end to the “blue slip” process, which has given Republicans a veto over any Biden nominee to a trial-court judgeship in their home state. Read more here.

THE LATEST NEWS

Politics

• The Supreme Court delayed a ruling on an abortion pill, keeping it available through Friday.

• Donald Trump and other Republicans are criticizing Ron DeSantis’s feud with Disney, saying he’s flouting pro-business and small government values.

• Members of Congress sold bank stocks as fears of bank failures grew.

• After the Fox settlement, attacks on legal protections for journalists are expected to continue.

International

• Russian propaganda tells Ukrainians they are under attack from their own army. There are people in eastern Ukraine who believe it.

• Civilians in Sudan are attempting to flee the fighting there, but an uneven cease-fire has made their journey dangerous.

• A stampede for food aid in Yemen killed at least 78 people.

• Palestinians are on edge after a surge in attacks by Jewish settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Gun Violence

• Two shootings of people who came up to the wrong house have brought attention to state self-defense laws. Here’s where they apply.

• The suspects in both cases appeared in court, and a man pleaded not guilty in the shooting in Kansas City, Mo.

• Two Texas cheerleaders were shot after one tried to get into the wrong car after practice, NPR reports.

Other Big Stories

• The F.D.A. authorized another round of Covid vaccine boosters for people 65 and older.

• New York City agreed to pay up to $53 million to people wrongly held in solitary confinement.

• A tornado killed at least two people in Oklahoma.

• Frank Ocean pulled out of Coachella, blaming a broken leg, after his first performance at the festival drew criticism.

• A fake hit that used artificial intelligence to copy the voices of Drake and The Weeknd shook the music world.

Opinions

Divisions in Taiwan show how China is inflicting damage on the island without firing a shot, Yingtai Lung writes.

Mental health diagnoses can provide comfort, Emma Camp writes, but defining our identities around them can be limiting.

MORNING READS

Stargazing: Astronomers love the Atacama Desert in Chile, because it’s exceptionally dry and dark.

California potholes: Winter storms left so many that even Arnold Schwarzenegger patched one.

Japan’s empty houses: Want to buy one for $25,000?

Hitching a ride: An ultramarathoner was disqualified after hopping in a car for a couple of miles.

Pink door: See the color that was ruled too bright for Scotland’s streets.

Advice from Wirecutter: These are the best sandals.

Lives Lived: Todd Haimes saved New York’s Roundabout Theater Company from bankruptcy and made it one of America’s largest nonprofit theaters. He died at 66.

SPORTS NEWS FROM THE ATHLETIC

N.B.A. playoffs: Dillon Brooks called LeBron James “old” after the Grizzlies’ win over the Lakers last night. And Jamal Murray went off with a 40-point performance for a Nuggets win.

An upset: The Florida Panthers topped the juggernaut Boston Bruins, 6-3, in the first round of the N.H.L. playoffs last night.

Joint World Cup? The United States and Mexico are launching a shared bid for the 2027 Women’s World Cup.

ARTS AND IDEAS

New noses

The perfume industry has long relied on a small number of scents, like jasmine, rose or bergamot. Now, indie perfumers are imagining new possibilities, including scents that evoke birthday parties (with a note of latex), the supernatural or Jesus’ anointed feet.

Marissa Zappas is one of the popular new perfumers. You can smell her work at the Museum of Sex in New York, where she captures the loss of innocence in a bright pink bedroom with a scent that smells sweet, floral … and a little bit like cat urine.

PLAY, WATCH, EAT

What to Cook

A rolex (a vegetable omelet, not the watch) is popular on the streets of Kampala, Uganda. The name may come from saying “rolled eggs” three times fast.

Travel

Visit the sun-splashed seaside city of Málaga, Spain, to rediscover Picasso.

Late Night

Jimmy Kimmel chided Fox News for not covering its settlement.

Now Time to Play

The pangrams from yesterday’s Spelling Bee were lunched and unclenched. Here are today’s puzzle and the Bee Buddy, which helps you find the remaining words.

Here’s the Mini Crossword, Wordle and today’s Sudoku.

Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David

P.S. Mae West and two producers were jailed for 10 days on obscenity charges related to their play “Sex,” The Times reported on the front page 96 years ago today.

Here’s today’s front page.

“The Daily” is about the Fox settlement.

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