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Daily Brew: January 15, 2021
January 15, 2021
 Welcome to the Friday, Jan. 15, Brew.Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
Carter appointee is longest-serving federal judgeHere’s a poorly-kept secret—we love analyzing data. At Ballotpedia, we like nothing more than rolling up our sleeves and finding the interesting facts in sets of political or government data. Recently, we asked one of our researchers to explore federal judicial data as part of our regular tracking of judicial nominations. With help from the database of the Federal Judicial Center, we looked at all 1,403 living Article III judges —829 who are active and 574 who are on senior status. The longest-serving active judge—Carmen Cerezo—was appointed by Jimmy Carter (D) in 1980. Cerezo serves on the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico. Some additional data points of interest:
The president appoints Article III judges to lifetime terms on the bench. Senate confirmation is required for all appointees. These judges serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, the United States Courts of Appeals, the United States District Courts, and the Court of International Trade. Federal judges on senior status are semi-retired. They continue to serve on federal courts while hearing a reduced number of cases. The longest-serving Article III judge on senior status—Jack Bertrand Weinstein—was appointed to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in 1967. Weinstein is a Lyndon Johnson (D) appointee. He assumed senior status on that court on Mar. 1, 1993. There are seven federal judges on senior status appointed by Richard Nixon (R) and five senior status judges appointed by Gerald Ford (R). This data includes current federal judges and does not reflect the total number of judges appointed by each president. Federal government changes coronavirus vaccine distribution guidelinesHealth and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Alex Azar announced on Jan. 12 that the federal government was changing its coronavirus vaccine distribution guidelines. HHS is recommending states expand the pool of eligible recipients to include everyone 65 and older, including people with underlying health conditions. Previously, the CDC recommended frontline essential workers and individuals over the age of 75 should be next in line for the vaccine after healthcare workers and long-term care residents. Azar also said the federal government would begin shipping second doses to states instead of holding them in reserve. He said states would receive vaccines based on the population of people age 65 and older and how quickly states can administer vaccines. Our Documenting America’s Path to Recovery daily email newsletter has been tracking states’ vaccine distribution plans and changes to those plans. Here are a few recent news stories on those developments:
If you want to dig a lot deeper, click here for our page showing coronavirus vaccine resources in your state. This includes links to state distribution plans, vaccination data, homepages for each state’s health department, and state-maintained lists of frequently asked questions about the coronavirus vaccine. And to stay informed, subscribe to Documenting America’s Path to Recovery and receive the latest info in your inbox each day. Trivia: Which state had the most state legislative seats change parties on Nov. 3?Yesterday’s Brew highlighted the 315 state legislative seats that switched parties as a result of the Nov. 3 elections. Of those, 215 went from Democratic to Republican, and 78 switched from Republican to Democrat.
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