Republicans press Obama to pull Arvo Mikkanen's nomination

Friday, February 18, 2011  

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma) and Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) are calling on President Barack Obama to withdrawn the nomination of Arvo Mikkanen to be a federal judge.

Coburn and Inhofe say Mikkanen, a member of the Kiowa Tribe, isn't qualified to serve on the judge for the Western District of Oklahoma. But neither will explain their reasons for opposing the nomination.

"No comment on that,'' Coburn told The Tulsa World. "I just think philosophically his background wouldn't be one I would choose," Inhofe told the paper.

Mikkanen has worked an assistant federal prosecutor the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Western District of Oklahoma since 1994. He's also served as a tribal court judge and had experience in a wide range of civil, criminal and tribal matters.

Get the Story:
Coburn, Inhofe call for withdrawal of judicial nomination (The Tulsa World 2/18)

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