He served in the
United States Navy on
active duty from 2002 to 2015, attaining the rank of
captain, and has been in active status in the
Select Reserves since 2015. On September 6, 2023, a hearing on his nomination was held before the
Senate Judiciary Committee. During his confirmation hearing, he received push back from Republican Senators
Josh Hawley and
Marsha Blackburn over a client whom he had represented as a public defender in 2018. The client pled guilty to distributing child pornography and Federico made a sentencing recommendation that was below the federal sentencing guidelines for the charge. In response, Federico pointed out that as a public defender, it was his "professional responsibility to vigorously defend his client", whom he did not choose to represent. On September 28, 2023, his nomination was reported out of committee by a 13–8 vote. On December 7, 2023, the
United States Senate invoked cloture on his nomination by a 63–32 vote. On December 11, 2023, his nomination was confirmed by a 61–29 vote. He received his judicial commission on December 13, 2023. ==References==