President Donald Trump is nominating an Oregon judge to be on the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Danielle Hunsaker is currently the presiding judge on the Washington County Circuit Court. She was appointed by Oregon Governor Kate Brown in 2017.
"I am incredibly humbled by the president's nomination announcement," Hunsaker said. "And I look forward to representing Oregon on the 9th Court, if confirmed by the Senate."
Hunsaker was a partner at a Portland law firm and before that an adjunct professor at Lewis & Clark Law School.
Oregon's Democratic U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley both recommended Hunsaker, along with three other Oregonians, for the job.
If confirmed, Hunsaker will be filling the position of federal judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain, who moved to senior status in 2016. That's a form of semi-retirement for federal judges.
Hunsaker previously served as a law clerk for O'Scannlain.
"I am delighted that the president has chosen Judge Hunsaker to fill the Oregon vacancy on the Court," O'Scannlain said.
He said he was happy to see Hunsaker on Merkley and Wyden's list of suggested nominees.
"It looks like the White House and the Oregon committee saw the same outstanding qualities that I saw in her when she clerked for me."
Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond, said Trump is making an effort to get more conservative and moderate judges into the 9th Circuit Court.
"I don't know what her political views are, but my sense is [Hunsaker] may be moderate or conservative politically," Tobias said.
“She would be replacing Judge O’Scannlain, who is considered conservative, so it wouldn’t be a change in that sense, but having someone who’s much younger than Judge O’Scannlain — that could make a difference over time.”
Hunsaker will be Trump's eighth appointment to the 9th Circuit Court if confirmed.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals seat was the source of controversy last year when the White House nominated Ryan Bounds over the objections of Oregon's senators.
Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ultimately pulled Bounds' nomination when it was clear there wasn't support to confirm him.
