Senate Republicans have been complaining that Democrats are going to be hard-pressed to fulfill Majority Leader Harry Reid’s pledge to act on three appellate court nominations before Memorial Day.

But Judiciary Chairman Patrick J. Leahy, D-Vt., announced Wednesday that the committee will hold a confirmation hearing May 7 for two Michigan nominees to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, Helene N. White and Raymond M. Kethledge.

The committee plans a confirmation hearing Thursday for G. Steven Agee of Virginia, nominated for a seat on the 4th Circuit.

White was first nominated by President Bill Clinton but blocked by Republicans. President Bush nominated her April 15.

In all, 10 nominations await Judiciary Committee action, and Republicans are threatening to hamstring the Senate if Democrats do not move faster.

Republicans have been pushing for action on the nomination of Peter Keisler to the D.C. Circuit and on the nominations of Robert J. Conrad Jr. and Steve A. Matthews to the 4th Circuit.

In an April 29 letter to Leahy and Reid, D-Nev., Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Arlen Specter, R-Pa., questioned whether the White and Kethledge nominations could get confirmation votes in the Senate before Memorial Day.

“We would hope, given the likelihood that Judge White and Mr. Kethledge cannot be confirmed prior to the recess, that, in order to fulfill the commitment, Chairman Leahy would turn to other outstanding circuit court nominees pending in committee who have been ready for hearings and waiting far longer than Judge White or Mr. Kethledge,” McConnell and Specter wrote.

But if Democrats can engineer confirmations for White, Ketledge and Agee before Memorial Day, McConnell and Specter would be hard-pressed to unite the Senate GOP caucus behind a new scorched-earth strategy over the issue anytime soon.