And those three are:
Mary Barzee-Flores
Peter Lopez
Barry Seltzer
Congrats to the finalists. Now it's up to Nelson/Rubio and Obama for the nomination.
Update -- Apparently, the Herald sat through the interviews and posted
this editorial about the appointment process:
The
three South Florida finalists advancing for consideration for a coveted opening
on the federal bench in the Southern District are to be congratulated. They’ve
earned it.
On
Thursday, they, along with other aspirants to the prestigious, lifetime
appointment, sat on the hot seat in a large conference room on the 14th floor
of the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse in downtown Miami.
A
member of the Miami Herald Editorial Board was present as the 20-plus members
of the Florida Judicial Nominating Commission quizzed and grilled the 15
candidates for 25 minutes each, the final phase of a long process that began in
July for the privilege of having their names recommended to Florida’s two U.S.
senators.
In this
race, voters did not pick the winner; the blue-ribbon panel made up of local
legal eagles and community leaders had the honor — and somehow that seemed
right and how, perhaps, it should be done for all judicial races.
The
different selection processes for state and federal judges — the first are
generally elected, the latter selected — highlighted the anemic slate of
judicial candidates and bitter races with plenty of mudslinging that played out
in Miami-Dade and Broward last month. Judicial decorum was missing among a
number of candidates.
Many of
the eight contested circuit and county races in Miami-Dade were marked by the
emergence of political committees supporting judicial candidates. Rival
committees sent out biting attack mailers, unsavory in a judicial race, and
scary — these are nonpartisan races in which candidates can only promise to
follow the law. The most bitter contest pitted former Miami-Dade School Board member
Renier Diaz de la Portilla against Veronica Diaz, an assistant attorney with
the city of Miami. She eventually won.
Race
and ethnicity also came into play, as has happened in the past. For example,
the supporters of incumbent Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Rodney “Rod” Smith, who is
black, accused unsuccessful challenger Christian Carrazana of running with the
hope his last name appealed to voters in the heavily Hispanic county, a charge
that Mr. Carrazana denied.
None of that took
place Thursday in the conference room where committee members drilled down to
gauge the smarts, temperament and dedication of each candidate.