President Trump Nominates Phil Axt to be U.S. District Judge for North Dakota

BISMARCK, N.D. - U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and John Hoeven (R-ND) today released the following statements after President Donald J. Trump nominated Phil Axt to serve as U.S. District Court Judge for North Dakota.

"President Trump made an excellent choice," said Cramer. "Phil knows the people, communities, and values which make North Dakota special. He became Solicitor General as the Biden regulatory assault was at its height and fought tirelessly to uphold the rights reserved to the state by the 10th Amendment and under the principles of cooperative federalism. He has built a strong personal foundation of integrity. From his days growing up on a farm near McClusky to the U.S. Army, and through the classrooms at Yale, this young man from North Dakota never lost sight of the law and Constitution guiding us. Phil has big shoes to fill, but I know he will bring the same dedication and integrity to the bench. I look forward to voting for him once the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service fixes the Biden rule which allows North Dakota's farmers' land to be flooded without compensation."

"Phil has done a good job serving the State of North Dakota as Solicitor General, and I believe he has the right legal temperament and experience to serve on the U.S. District Court for North Dakota," said Hoeven. "Phil has dedicated his life to public service. Prior to his legal service, he served in the U.S. Army as an intelligence officer. I first met Phil when he joined my office as a legal fellow, and he not only showed a strong legal mind, but good common sense and strong work ethic. I look forward to helping advance his confirmation through the Senate."

Axt serves as Solicitor General in the North Dakota Attorney General's Office, where he oversees the state's litigation against the federal government and other states, defends state laws from constitutional challenges and represents North Dakota before federal and state courts. Previously, he worked as a litigation associate representing clients in federal and state courts. He served as law clerk for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, a legal internship in a U.S. Attorney's office and as a legal fellow for Hoeven. Axt received his law degree from Yale Law School and graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He is a fifth generation North Dakotan, attended Bismarck High School and was raised in part on the family farm in Sheridan County.

Axt is being nominated to fill the vacancy created when Judge Daniel Traynor was confirmed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.