Michigan’s Senate delegation has blocked Michigan nominees to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit as payback for the Senate’s failure to confirm President Clinton’s nominees to the Sixth — Helene White (who is married to Sen. Carl Levin’s cousin), in particular. Now the Senators and Bush Administration have cut a deal to fill two vacancies on the Court. In return for nominating White to the Sixth Circuit, the Senators have dropped their opposition to Bush nominee Raymond Kethledge. To make room for White’s nomination, the White House is withdrawing the nomination of Stephen Murphy, and renominating him to an open district court seat. How Appealing has more here.