Henry William Saad (born June 1948, in
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
,
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
)
[Resume]
at US Dept of Justice website is a
judge on the
Michigan Court of Appeals
The Michigan Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court of the state of Michigan. It was created by the Michigan Constitution of 1963, and commenced operations in 1965. Its opinions are reported both in an official publication of ...
and a former nominee to the
United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (in case citations, 6th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:
* Eastern District of Kentucky
* Western District of ...
.
Background
Judge Saad received his bachelor's degree from
Wayne State University
Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...
School of Business with honors and his law degree from Wayne State University,
magna cum laude. He was a partner at
Dickinson, Wright, Moon, Van Dusen & Freeman, where he practiced law for twenty years.
He was also an arbitrator for the
Michigan Employment Relations Commission and a hearing referee for the
Michigan Department of Civil Rights
Michigan Department of Civil Rights is a department of the Michigan State Government created in 1965 to support the work of the Michigan Civil Rights Commission of Michigan's Constitution of 1963. The Commission directs the work of the department ...
.
On October 2, 1992, President
George H. W. Bush nominated Saad to a seat on the
, but the
Senate Judiciary Committee
The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the Department of Justice (DOJ), consider executive and judicial nominations ...
of the
102nd Congress failed to give him a hearing and let his nomination lapse.
Saad was appointed to the Michigan Court of Appeals in 1994, was elected for a six-year term in 1996, and was re-elected to a six-year term in 2002.
Sixth Circuit nomination under Bush
On November 8, 2001, Saad was nominated by President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
to a seat on the
United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (in case citations, 6th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:
* Eastern District of Kentucky
* Western District of ...
vacated by the Judge
James L. Ryan
James Leo Ryan (born November 19, 1932) is an inactive senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Education and career
Born in Detroit, Michigan, Ryan graduated from Detroit Catholic Centra ...
who had taken
senior status
Senior status is a form of semi- retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of service as a federal judge must be at leas ...
. On the same day, Bush also nominated
David McKeague
David William McKeague (born November 5, 1946) is a Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Education and career
McKeague received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michi ...
and
Susan Bieke Neilson
Susan Bieke Neilson (August 27, 1956 – January 25, 2006) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and before that, a state trial judge in Michigan.
Neilson was nominated by President Geor ...
to Michigan seats on the Sixth Circuit. On June 26, 2002, Bush nominated
Richard Allen Griffin
Richard Allen Griffin (born April 15, 1952) is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Previously, he was a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals.
Griffin was first nominated to the United Stat ...
to a fourth Michigan seat on the Sixth Circuit. During the Democratic-controlled
107th Congress, all four nominations were stalled in the
Senate Judiciary Committee
The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the Department of Justice (DOJ), consider executive and judicial nominations ...
by then chairman, Senator
Patrick Leahy
Patrick Joseph Leahy (; born March 31, 1940) is an American politician and attorney who is the senior United States senator from Vermont and serves as the president pro tempore of the United States Senate. A member of the Democratic Party, ...
, D-VT.
In the 2002 midterm congressional elections, the
Republicans regained control of the Senate. During the new
108th Congress
The 108th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives from January 3, 2003 to January 3, 2005, during ...
, Senator
Orrin Hatch
Orrin Grant Hatch (March 22, 1934 – April 23, 2022) was an American attorney and politician who served as a United States senator from Utah from 1977 to 2019. Hatch's 42-year Senate tenure made him the longest-serving Republican U.S. senato ...
, R-UT, the new Republican chairman of the
Senate Judiciary Committee
The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the Department of Justice (DOJ), consider executive and judicial nominations ...
began to process the previously blocked four nominees. In March 2003, Michigan's two Democratic senators,
Carl Levin and
Debbie Stabenow
Deborah Ann Stabenow ( ; née Greer, born April 29, 1950) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Michigan, a seat she has held since 2001. A member of the Democratic Party, she became the state's first female ...
, announced that they would
blue-slip all Bush judicial nominees from Michigan because Bush refused to renominate
Helene White
Helene N. White (born December 2, 1954) is a Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Previously, she was a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals.
Background
Born in Jackson Heights, Q ...
and
Kathleen McCree Lewis
Kathleen McCree Lewis (September 27, 1947 – October 16, 2007) was an American lawyer and former federal judicial nominee to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Early life and education
Lewis was born in Boston. Lewis ...
, two Michigan nominees, to the Sixth Circuit, whose nominations the Senate Republicans had refused to process during President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
's second term. Helene White at the time was married to Levin's cousin.
Contrary to Levin's and Stabenow's wishes, Hatch gave Saad, McKeague and Griffin committee hearings, and passed the three nominees out of committee. Angered, Levin and Stabenow convinced their caucus to
filibuster the three in order to prevent them from having confirmation votes.
The Senate Republicans increased their numbers in the
109th Congress
The 109th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, from January 3, 2005 to January 3, 2007, dur ...
. Tensions between the Republicans and Democrats rose dramatically as the Republicans contemplated breaking the filibusters of ten Bush court of appeals nominees (including Saad, McKeague and Griffin) by using the
nuclear option
In the United States Senate, the nuclear option is a parliamentary procedure that allows the Senate to override a standing rule by a simple majority, avoiding the two-thirds supermajority normally required to invoke cloture on a resolution to ...
. During a debate concerning filibusters and the nuclear option, Judge Saad was accused by Sen.
Harry Reid
Harry Mason Reid Jr. (; December 2, 1939 – December 28, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Nevada from 1987 to 2017. He led the Senate Democratic Caucus from 2005 to 2017 and was the Sena ...
(D-Nevada) of having a background that had some national security concerns, apparently in violation of various Senate rules (Senate Rule 29, Section 5). Various pundits condemned Sen. Reid for these remarks about a confidential security relationship, comparing it to the
Valerie Plame affair
The Plame affair (also known as the CIA leak scandal and Plamegate) was a political scandal that revolved around journalist Robert Novak's public identification of Valerie Plame as a covert Central Intelligence Agency officer in 2003.
In 2002, ...
within the Bush administration.
In order to defuse the explosive
situation concerning the use of the nuclear option and Democrats' obstruction of President Bush's judicial nominations, fourteen moderate Republican and Democratic senators called the
Gang of 14 The Gang of 14 was a bipartisan group of Senators in the 109th United States Congress who successfully, at the time, negotiated a compromise in the spring of 2005 to avoid the deployment of the so-called "nuclear option" by Senate Republican Major ...
joined together to forge an agreement to guarantee certain filibustered nominations up or down votes. Henry Saad and
William Myers William, Wil, Bill, or Billy Myers may refer to:
Sports
*Bill Myers (baseball) (1886–?), American baseball player
*Billy Myers (1910–1995), shortstop in Major League Baseball
* William James Myers (1937–2017), American wrestler better known a ...
, however, were expressly excluded from the guarantee. Saad was excluded due to further opposition from Levin and Stabenow because he had angered Stabenow in September 2003 by sending out an e-mail critical of her participation in his original obstruction. In the e-mail, Saad wrote to a supporter about Stabenow, "This is the game they play. Pretend to do the right thing while
abusing the system
Gaming the system (also rigging, abusing, cheating, milking, playing, working, or breaking the system, or gaming or bending the rules) can be defined as using the rules and procedures meant to protect a system to, instead, manipulate the system ...
and undermining the constitutional process. Perhaps some day she will pay the price for her misconduct." Stabenow became aware of the e-mail when Saad accidentally sent it not only to the supporter but also to Stabenow's office.
On March 23, 2006, with no hope of a confirmation vote, Saad withdrew his nomination. His 2001-2006 nomination is one of the longest nominations never acted upon by the Senate. His nomination was later replaced by that of
Raymond Kethledge
Raymond Michael Kethledge (born December 11, 1966) is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. He was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2008. Kethledge appeared on Donald Trump's list of ...
, who was only confirmed in 2008 after Bush agreed to renominate
Helene White
Helene N. White (born December 2, 1954) is a Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Previously, she was a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals.
Background
Born in Jackson Heights, Q ...
, now divorced from Levin's cousin, to the
Sixth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (in case citations, 6th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:
* Eastern District of Kentucky
* Western District of K ...
.
Current life
In November 2007, the
Michigan Supreme Court
The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is Michigan's court of last resort and consists of seven justices. The Court is located in the Michigan Hall of Justice at 925 Ottawa Street in Lansing, the sta ...
appointed Judge Saad to a two-year term as chief judge of the Court of Appeals beginning January 1, 2008.
He is an adjunct professor at the
University of Detroit
The University of Detroit Mercy is a private Roman Catholic university in Detroit, Michigan. It is sponsored by both the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy. The university was founded in 1877 and is the largest Catholic univers ...
/Mercy School of Law and
Wayne State University Law School
Wayne State University Law School (Wayne Law) is the law school of Wayne State University in Detroit. Wayne Law is located in Midtown, Detroit's Cultural Center. Founded in 1927, the law school offers juris doctor (J.D.), master of laws (LL.M.), ...
, where he teaches Evidence, Public Sector Labor and Professional Responsibility, respectively. Judge Saad serves on the boards of
Detroit Public Television, the
American Heart Association and Brother Rice High School.
Saad's wife, attorney Mara Letica Saad, was nominated by President
George H. W. Bush in 1992 to be ambassador to
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
. The nomination came late in Bush's presidency, however, and never was acted upon by the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
before Bush's presidency ended. President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
chose not to renominate her.
See also
*
Bill Clinton judicial appointment controversies
*
George W. Bush judicial appointment controversies
During President George W. Bush's two term tenure in office, a few of his nominations for federal judgeships were blocked by the Senate Democrats either directly in the Senate Judiciary Committee or on the full Senate floor in various procedura ...
*
Filibuster
*
Cloture
Cloture (, also ), closure or, informally, a guillotine, is a motion or process in parliamentary procedure aimed at bringing debate to a quick end. The cloture procedure originated in the French National Assembly, from which the name is taken. ' ...
*
Nuclear option
In the United States Senate, the nuclear option is a parliamentary procedure that allows the Senate to override a standing rule by a simple majority, avoiding the two-thirds supermajority normally required to invoke cloture on a resolution to ...
*
Gang of 14 The Gang of 14 was a bipartisan group of Senators in the 109th United States Congress who successfully, at the time, negotiated a compromise in the spring of 2005 to avoid the deployment of the so-called "nuclear option" by Senate Republican Major ...
References
External links
Profile at the US Dept of Justice
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saad, Henry William
1948 births
American people of Arab descent
Living people
Michigan Court of Appeals judges
University of Detroit Mercy faculty
Wayne State University alumni
Wayne State University faculty