"a judicial emergency"

brewing in Mississippi... well, at least according to the Administrative Office of United States Courts and this editorial at hattiesburgamerican.com, imploring President Bush to fill the seat vacated by Pickering when he was appointed to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. the author writes:

The unresolved cases on this court docket - which used to be presided over by Judge Charles Pickering - has reached a whopping 1,223. And the number is likely to grow unless the Bush administration does what it should have done months ago: appoint a replacement for Pickering. The Southern District court has been in a state of limbo since January, when Bush bypassed the Senate confirmation process and elevated Pickering to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

So, aside from the larger issue, which is that I have no faith in George's decision-making and no respect for the types of folks he likes to appoint, part of me is wondering... just how much of this backlog should be attributed to Pickering's own lack of expedience while sitting on this bench?