Federal judges condemn another 'partisan' Trump appointee

More and more federal judges appear to have it in for President Donald Trump’s unconfirmed appointees who are leading state prosecutions, according to a report by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

In a move similar to judicial bench ejections in New Jersey, a group of judges for the Eastern District of Wisconsin have refused to confirm Pam Bondi appointee Brad Schimel the permanent U.S. attorney, which makes his last day in office March 16.

Schimel, a former state judge and prosecutor who knew Bondi from when they were both state attorneys general, according to the Sentinel, was named interim U.S. Attorney in November as Wisconsin's bipartisan nominating committee failed to come to a consensus on a nominee for the position.

But interim U.S. attorneys are limited to 120 days. A majority of the judges could have made his appointment permanent, but declined with a March 10 order submitted by Chief Judge Pamela Pepper.

The Sentinel reports the judges did not even take an official vote at the March 9 meeting. They just “decided they did not want to insert themselves into the process.”

"The Court awaits the nomination and confirmation of a full-time United States Attorney by the President and United States Senate," Judge Pepper's stated.

The court was carefully unopinionated about its refusal, but other opinions suggest Schimel’s reputation had soured on people. U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) opposed his nomination and has criticized his continued hold on the office, even going so far as to call him a "failed politician" who had "no business being a top prosecutor in Wisconsin.”

"I never thought a clearly partisan actor like Brad Schimel should be a top federal prosecutor in our state to begin with, and he certainly shouldn't get an extension for this job," the Sentinel reports Baldwin saying earlier in March.

Schimel’s office was the one that won a guilty verdict in a high-profile case against former Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan, after a jury found Dugan guilty of obstructing federal immigration agents trying to arrest an undocumented immigrant. Critics called the prosecution politicized and designed to send a message to other judges opposing Trump’s immigration policies.

Prior to his appointment, Schimel ran for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court in spring 2025, but lost to liberal candidate Susan Crawford by 10 percentage points, likely as a backlash against Trump — who had backed Schimel.

Since Trump’s 2024 election, the president’s policies have made his endorsements the kiss of death to many Wisconsin Republicans, particularly in high-visibility races in 2025. Since 2025, Republicans have watched the state slip more thoroughly from their grasp, and more conservatives are set to retire from state judicial office this year.

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