 Menendez became the first Senate Democrat to block one of President Obama's judicial nominees.On January 13, 2012, Menendez met again with Shwartz and after what he characterized as an "in-depth discussion," announced that he would support Shwartz's nomination and return his blue slip, paving the way for the Senate Judiciary Committee to hold a hearing on Shwartz.The New York Times reported that in response to Menendez's obstruction, the White House had been declining to nominate United States Magistrate Judge Michael A. Shipp, a Menendez choice, to a vacancy on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.