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Sen. Cruz Praises Confirmation of Andrew Oldham for Fifth Circuit

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today released the following statement after the Senate confirmed Andrew Oldham to fill a vacancy on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Before the vote, Sen. Cruz spoke on the Senate floor in support of his nomination. 

“I am thrilled the Senate acted swiftly to confirm Andy Oldham to fill this crucial vacancy,” Sen. Cruz said. “Andy will be the third Texan confirmed by the Senate during this Congress to serve on the federal appellate courts, and he represents the best of Texas’s legal community. Andy is a proven constitutionalist with true devotion to our country, and I am confident he will make an outstanding judge who interprets the law as written and upholds the Constitution.”

Sens. Cruz and John Cornyn (R-Texas) recommended Andrew Oldham to President Trump following an extensive review and interview process of the candidate pool by the bipartisan Federal Judicial Evaluation Committee (FJEC). Sens. Cruz and Cornyn established the FJEC, a bipartisan panel of leading attorneys in Texas, to help identify the most qualified candidates to fill judicial vacancies. The panel reviewed applications, interviewed candidates, and made recommendations to the Senators, who interviewed individuals before making their recommendations to the President. 

General Counsel to Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Andrew S. Oldham: Nominee for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

Andrew Oldham currently serves as General Counsel to Texas Governor Greg Abbott, where he advises the Governor on a range of issues under federal and state law and manages litigation in which the Governor is an interested party. Mr. Oldham previously served as Deputy Solicitor General for the State of Texas, where he represented Texas in federal courts across the country, including twice before the United States Supreme Court. Before that, Mr. Oldham was an attorney at Kellogg Hansen Todd Figel & Frederick in Washington, D.C. His practice focused on appellate litigation in federal courts of appeals throughout the country. Before entering private practice, Mr. Oldham served as a law clerk to Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., at the Supreme Court of the United States and to Judge David B. Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He also worked as an attorney-adviser in the Office of Legal Counsel at the U.S. Department of Justice from 2006 to 2008. Mr. Oldham earned a B.A. from the University of Virginia with highest honors, a Truman Scholarship for graduate school, an M. Phil., first class (with distinction), from Cambridge University, and a J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School.

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