Senate confirms three Arizona judges

The Senate voted to confirm three of President Obama’s nominee to be U.S. district court judges for Arizona.

{mosads}Steven Logan, John Tuchi and Diane Humetewa were all confirmed on a vote of 96-0.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said it was crucial that the Senate confirm the Arizona judges because his state has six vacancies out of 13 slots.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has filed cloture on three more judicial nominees for the district of Arizona. Votes on those nominees are expected later this week.

“The federal district court in Arizona has been under tremendous strain these past few years, and the confirmation of these six judges will be a great relief to an overburdened court, one which is consistently ranked as one of the top ten busiest in the country,” McCain said ahead of Wednesday’s vote.

Earlier Wednesday, the Senate voted to end debate on all three.

Cloture was never in doubt since Democrats used the “nuclear option,” unilaterally changing the Senate filibuster rules last year. Now only a simple-majority is needed to advance most nominations instead of the previously needed 60 votes.