The U.S. Senate on Tuesday moved forward with the confirmation of Anne-Leigh Gaylord Moe as a federal judge for the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The chamber voted 53–46 to advance her nomination, marking another step in placing a new judge on the federal bench.
President Donald Trump praised Moe following the vote in a post on his Truth Social platform.
“I am pleased to announce the nomination of Anne-Leigh Gaylord Moe to serve as Judge on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida,” Trump wrote. He highlighted her previous judicial experience in Florida and described her as someone who has strongly represented the interests of residents in the state.
Moe has served on Florida’s Second District Court of Appeal since 2022. Prior to that appointment, she spent nearly ten years as a circuit judge in Florida’s Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, which covers Hillsborough County. Earlier in her career, she worked as an assistant state attorney in Tampa, gaining experience in criminal prosecution before moving into the judiciary.
Her advancement in the Senate represents another judicial appointment during Trump’s effort to fill vacancies across the federal court system, which has been a major focus of his administration.
Meanwhile, attention in Washington remains focused on the ongoing federal government shutdown and its potential political consequences. CNN data analyst Harry Enten recently examined polling trends to determine whether the shutdown is affecting public support for Trump.
According to Enten, current polling suggests the standoff has not significantly damaged Trump’s approval ratings. When compared with the 2018–2019 government shutdown during Trump’s first presidency, the difference is notable. During that earlier shutdown, Trump’s approval rating had already declined several points at a similar stage in the crisis and continued to fall as the standoff continued.
This time, Enten said, polling indicates that Trump’s overall approval rating has remained steady and may have even improved slightly. “This shutdown hasn’t eaten into Donald Trump’s support at all,” Enten said, noting that the president’s net approval rating appears to have increased by about one point in recent polling.
One reason for the difference may be how voters assign responsibility for the shutdown. During the 2018–2019 standoff, a majority of Americans—about 61 percent—said they blamed Trump for the impasse. In the current situation, that number is lower, with roughly 48 percent of respondents attributing responsibility to him, according to Enten’s analysis.
The shutdown itself stems from a broader dispute in Congress over federal spending. Lawmakers must pass funding legislation to keep government agencies operating. Democrats have said they will oppose spending bills that do not extend Affordable Care Act subsidies scheduled to expire at the end of the year, while Republicans have not yet agreed to those terms.
Because Republicans hold only narrow majorities in Congress, passing a temporary funding bill would require at least some Democratic support in the Senate. Until lawmakers reach an agreement on spending legislation, the government shutdown is expected to continue, keeping pressure on both parties to negotiate a resolution.
