Senate backs Trump court nominee over home-state objections

WASHINGTON (AP) " The Senate has confirmed President Donald Trump's nominee for a Philadelphia-based appeals court, despite opposition from the nominee's two home-state senators.

The Senate voted 54-45 Tuesday to approve Paul Matey to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, giving the court a majority of Republican appointees.

Matey, a former aide to ex-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, was opposed by New Jersey's two Democratic senators, who accused Trump and the Senate's Republican majority of shredding a longtime custom for partisan gain. Home-state senators traditionally are allowed to weigh in on judicial nominees before they move forward.

New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez says Republicans "claim to be the party of conservatism. Yet there's nothing conservative about sweeping aside century-old norms for political gain."