Maggie Gibson Older Judges and Vacant Seats Give Trump Huge Power to Shape American Courts

In his brief few weeks in office, President Trump has repeatedly questioned and ridiculed court decisions, and blaming national misfortunes upon the court. However, he will soon be appointing more federal court judges than any first term president in forty years. The growing number of older judges and the vacancies in the federal courts give Trump the opportunity to shape the federal court system even after he leaves office, giving that judges serve a lifetime term on good behavior. However, the Republican senate leaders have obstructed all nominees for the federal courts, even Mr. Obama's lower court nominees. There are currently 112 of 700 vacancies in the federal court system. Obama left a legacy upon the courts by appointing the most people to the judiciary who are not white men.
The author is relatively unbiased, pointing out the opportunity Trump could take, without pointing out whether it's a good or bad thing. However, the idea of a solid 1/5 of the judiciary being open for Trump to just nominate members of his own party seems to point to a majority Republican government as an overwhelming force. I sincerely hope Trump nominates those who are sincerely cut out and have worked hard for the job without relying solely on the shortsightedness of his own party's and his own wants, otherwise I fear for the future.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/02/14/upshot/trump-poised-to-transform-american-courts.html