[2] He addressed the allegations at his confirmation hearing by apologizing and by asserting that he was not aware that he was asked to place signs—reading "You Can Be Imprisoned" and giving vague descriptions of campaign violations—only in black neighborhoods in south Dallas.

Fitzwater testified that he thought he was participating in an anti-vote-fraud effort, and he noted that he later was dropped from a federal lawsuit by minority groups.

At his second hearing in February 1986, Fitzwater told the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary that he would not participate in such signposting again.

[1] On January 24, 1992, President George H. W. Bush nominated Fitzwater to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

However, with the Senate Judiciary Committee controlled by Democrats, Fitzwater's nomination languished, and he never received a hearing before Bush's presidency ended.