In history-making news, New York Senator Chuck Schumer has recommended that President Obama nominate Daniel Alter as a federal judge. Alter is openly gay — and would be the country’s first such federal judge.

According to D.C. Agenda, Schumer said of Alter,

“His outstanding leadership skills, his commitment to justice, and his extensive experience make him an exceptional choice for a position on the federal bench. I’m proud to nominate Daniel Alter. Period. But I am equally proud to nominate him because he is a history-maker who will be the first openly gay male judge in American history.”

An Advocate story points out that, in 1994, President Bill Clinton appointed Deborah Batts, an out lesbian, as federal judge for the U.S. district court of the southern district of New York. Additionally, the Alter recommendation “arrives as the San Francisco Chronicle reported this week that Judge Vaughn Walker of the U.S. district court for the northern district of California, who is presiding over the Proposition 8 trial, is gay. Walker has not commented on the report.”