Senate confirms Oetken to U.S. District Court in New York

The Senate confirmed J. Paul Oetken, by a vote of 80 to 13, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.  Oetken was a senior vice president and associate general counsel at Cablevision immediately prior to his confirmation.  He is a graduate of Yale law school, clerked for Justice Harry A. Blackmun of the U.S. Supreme Court and served as associate counsel to President Bill Clinton.  The New York Times reports that Oetken is the first openly gay man confirmed as a federal judge.