This news is a couple of weeks old, but still worth mentioning... Denny Chin, a federal district court judge in Manhattan whose recent claim to fame was sentencing epic Ponzi schemer Bernard L. Madoff to 150 years in prison, is expected to be hominated by the White House for a prestigious appellate judgeship in New York: Madoff's Sentencing Judge to Be Appellate Court Choice.

According to the office of Senator Charles E. Schumer, who recommended Judge Chin, the nomination is expected in the coming months, in time to be confirmed by the Senate before it recesses later in the year.

If nominated, and confirmed by the Senate, Judge Chin would join the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, known widely for its rulings in financial and white-collar cases, among others. It's also the court where Justice Sonia Sotomayor served before she was named to the Supreme Court.

Judge Chin, 55, would become the sole Asian American to fill an active judgeship on a United States Circuit Court of Appeals. (Judge A. Wallace Tashima of the Ninth Circuit has taken senior status, a sort of semi-retirement.) I'm sure it's great to be known as the guy who sentenced that scamming bastard Bernie Madoff to 150 years in jail, but he's had a pretty solid career outside of that.