Conservative courts likely to be Bush legacy
The president's success in getting judicial nominees confirmed gives the federal bench a decided GOP tilt.
By David G. Savage, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
January 2, 2008

WASHINGTON -- After nearly seven years in the White House, President Bush has named 294 judges to the federal courts, giving Republican appointees a solid majority of the seats, including a 60%-to-40% edge over Democrats on the influential U.S. appeals courts.

The rightward shift on the federal bench is likely to prove a lasting legacy of the Bush presidency, since many of these judges -- including his two Supreme Court appointees -- may serve for two more decades. the rest