Trump choosing white men as judges highest rate in decades
President Donald Trump is nominating white men to America's federal courts at a rate not seen in nearly 30 years  threatening to reverse a slow transformation toward a judiciary that reflects the nation's diversity.
So far  91 percent of  Trump 's nominees are white  and 81 percent are male  an Associated Press analysis has found. Three of every four are white men  with few African-Americans and Hispanics in the mix. The last president to nominate a similarly homogenous group was George H.W. Bush.
The shift could prove to be one of  Trump 's most enduring legacies. These are lifetime appointments  and  Trump  has inherited both an unusually high number of vacancies and an aging population of judges. That puts  him  in position to significantly reshape the courts that decide thousands of civil rights  environmental  criminal justice and other disputes across the country. The White House has been upfront about its plans to quickly fill the seats with conservatives  and has made clear that judicial philosophy tops any concerns about shrinking racial or gender diversity.
 Trump  is anything but shy about  his  plans  calling  his  imprint on the courts an "untold story" of  his  presidency.
Comparing the first ten months of judicial appointments by  former President Barack Obama vs. Trump .
"Nobody wants to talk about it "  he  says. "But when you think of it ... that has consequences 40 years out."  He  predicted at a recent Cabinet meeting  "A big percentage of the court will be changed by this administration over a very short period of time."
One court that has become a focus in the debate is the Eastern District of North Carolina  a region that  despite its sizeable black population  has never had a black judge. A seat on that court has been open for more than a decade. George W. Bush named a white man  and  Barack Obama  at different points nominated two black women  but none of those nominees ever came to a vote in the Senate.
 Trump  has renominated Bush's original choice: Thomas Farr  a private attorney whose work defending North Carolina's redistricting maps and a voter identification law has raised concerns among civil rights advocates.
In recent decades  Democrats have consistently named more racial minorities and women on the courts. But even compared to his Republican predecessors   Trump 's nominees stand out. So far  he has nominated the highest percentage of white judges in his first year since Ronald Reagan. If he continues on his trend through his first term  he will be the first Republican since Herbert Hoover to name fewer women and minorities to the court than his GOP predecessor.
Some of Obama's efforts were thwarted by a Republican-led Senate that blocked all of his nominations he made in the final year of his presidency  handing  Trump  a backlog of more than 100 open seats and significant sway over the future of the court.
 Trump  has moved aggressively to name new judges  getting off to a much quicker start than  his  predecessors.  He  has nominated more than twice as many as Obama had at this point in  his  presidency. While there have been clashes in the Senate over the nomination process  Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has signaled that he is committed to moving judicial nominees through.
Many of  Trump 's white  male nominees would replace white  male judges. But of the  Trump  nominees currently pending  more than a quarter are white males slated for seats have been held by women or minorities.
White House spokesman Hogan Gidley says  Trump  is focused on qualifications and suggests that prioritizing diversity would bring politics to the bench.
" The president  has delivered on  his  promise to nominate the best  most-qualified judges " Gidley said. "While past presidents may have chosen to nominate activist judges with a political agenda and a history of legislating from the bench   President Trump  has nominated outstanding originalist judges who respect the U.S. Constitution."
 Trump   who has cited the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch as a key achievement  has focused on judges with conservative resumes.  His  picks have been welcomed by conservative legal groups.
Leonard Leo  the executive vice president of the Federalist Society who has advised  Trump  on judges  said  the president 's judicial picks should be evaluated based on  his  nominations to the Supreme Court and appellate courts  given that home-state senators traditionally offer recommendations for district courts that carry significant weight when the lawmaker and  the president  are of the same party.
[TGT]  is nominating white men to America's federal courts at a rate not seen in nearly 30 years  threatening to reverse a slow transformation toward a judiciary that reflects the nation's diversity.
So far  91 percent of  Trump 's nominees are white  and 81 percent are male  an Associated Press analysis has found. Three of every four are white men  with few African-Americans and Hispanics in the mix. The last president to nominate a similarly homogenous group was George H.W. Bush.
The shift could prove to be one of  Trump 's most enduring legacies. These are lifetime appointments  and   [TGT] has inherited both an unusually high number of vacancies and an aging population of judges. That puts  him  in position to significantly reshape the courts that decide thousands of civil rights  environmental  criminal justice and other disputes across the country. The White House has been upfront about its plans to quickly fill the seats with conservatives  and has made clear that judicial philosophy tops any concerns about shrinking racial or gender diversity.
  [TGT] is anything but shy about   [TGT]   plans  calling   [TGT]   imprint on the courts an "untold story" of   [TGT]   presidency.
Comparing the first ten months of judicial appointments by  former President Barack Obama vs.  [TGT]  .
"Nobody wants to talk about it "  he  says. "But when you think of it ... that has consequences 40 years out."  He  predicted at a recent Cabinet meeting  "A big percentage of the court will be changed by this administration over a very short period of time."
One court that has become a focus in the debate is the Eastern District of North Carolina  a region that  despite its sizeable black population  has never had a black judge. A seat on that court has been open for more than a decade. George W. Bush named a white man  and  Barack Obama  at different points nominated two black women  but none of those nominees ever came to a vote in the Senate.
  [TGT] has renominated Bush's original choice: Thomas Farr  a private attorney whose work defending North Carolina's redistricting maps and a voter identification law has raised concerns among civil rights advocates.
In recent decades  Democrats have consistently named more racial minorities and women on the courts. But even compared to his Republican predecessors    [TGT]  's nominees stand out. So far  he has nominated the highest percentage of white judges in his first year since Ronald Reagan. If he continues on his trend through his first term  he will be the first Republican since Herbert Hoover to name fewer women and minorities to the court than his GOP predecessor.
Some of Obama's efforts were thwarted by a Republican-led Senate that blocked all of his nominations he made in the final year of his presidency  handing   [TGT] a backlog of more than 100 open seats and significant sway over the future of the court.
  [TGT] has moved aggressively to name new judges  getting off to a much quicker start than   [TGT]   predecessors.   [TGT]   has nominated more than twice as many as Obama had at this point in   [TGT]   presidency. While there have been clashes in the Senate over the nomination process  Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has signaled that he is committed to moving judicial nominees through.
Many of  Trump 's white  male nominees would replace white  male judges. But of the   [TGT]   nominees currently pending  more than a quarter are white males slated for seats have been held by women or minorities.
White House spokesman Hogan Gidley says   [TGT] is focused on qualifications and suggests that prioritizing diversity would bring politics to the bench.
" The president  has delivered on  his  promise to nominate the best  most-qualified judges " Gidley said. "While past presidents may have chosen to nominate activist judges with a political agenda and a history of legislating from the bench   President Trump  has nominated outstanding originalist judges who respect the U.S. Constitution."
 Trump   who has cited the confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch as a key achievement  has focused on judges with conservative resumes.  His  picks have been welcomed by conservative legal groups.
 [TGT] said  the president 's judicial picks should be evaluated based on   [TGT]   nominations to the Supreme Court and appellate courts  given that home-state senators traditionally offer recommendations for district courts that carry significant weight when the lawmaker and  the president  are of the same party.