Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s office on Thursday defended a deal to trade four appeals court nominees for expedited confirmation of President Joe Biden’s district court picks, even as President-elect Donald Trump urged Republicans in the chamber to block more judicial appointments.

Schumer’s spokesperson described the agreement, reported by Politico, as a strategic decision to overcome Republican opposition and ensure progress in confirming federal judges. The deal involved withdrawing four appeals court nominees in exchange for advancing over three times as many district court candidates.

“The trade was four circuit nominees — all lacking the votes to get confirmed — for more than triple the number of additional judges moving forward,” a spokesperson for Schumer said, according to The Daily Caller.

To date, Senate Democrats have confirmed 221 of President Joe Biden’s judicial appointees, including the recent confirmation of Sharad Desai to a federal judgeship in Arizona, according to Politico. However, Republicans have continued to use procedural tactics this week to stall the confirmation process for additional Biden nominees.

Meanwhile, President-elect Donald Trump called on Senate Republicans to block further judicial confirmations by Democrats, as President Joe Biden is just 15 appointments away from surpassing Trump’s first-term record, Axios reported.

Trump expressed his concerns on X, formerly known as Twitter, after Democrats secured two additional judicial confirmations on Wednesday with narrow 50-48 votes, made possible by the absence of Republican Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Braun of Indiana.

“The Democrats are trying to stack the Courts with Radical Left Judges on their way out the door. Republican Senators need to Show Up and Hold the Line — No more Judges confirmed before Inauguration Day,” Trump wrote.

The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced six judicial nominees on Thursday, including former Democratic Rep. Anthony Brindisi of New York, Politico reported. These nominees are set to be considered by the full Senate in the coming weeks.