Description: The perennially controversial world of federal appointments of judges and executive branch officers has long intrigued academics and the public but has not received thorough historical analysis until now. With The Federal Appointments Process, historical perspective on the process is finally available: Michael J. Gerhardt provides a comprehensive and fascinating analysis of two hundred years of federal appointments.

Many scholars, and legal scholars in particular, have limited their study of the federal appointments process to particular dramatic conflicts, tending to view appointments in a vacuum without regard to other incidents in the process, other legislative matters, or broader social, political, and historical developments. Gerhardt does precisely the opposite: employing the method of "historical institutionalism", he examines much of the history of the process, including every president's performance in the appointments process, virtually all the major confirmation contests in American history, and the significant legal and constitutional questions raised throughout history. The approach is not limited to politicos, however, as Gerhardt includes in his discussion the important roles played by media and technology in federal appointments. He concludes with suggestions for reforms in light of recent controversies springing from the longest delays in history that many judicial nominees are now facing in the Senate.

This comprehensive look into the federal appointments process is as revealing with respect to political intrigue as it is informative with respect to political institutions. Gerhardt's intensive treatment of this topical subject will be of interest to students andscholars of political science, government, history, and legal studies.

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