Washington Democrat Patty Murray tried to sound the alarm over a new federal judge, and instead named the lead singer of a rock band, drawing swift and pointed corrections online.

Murray, who has held her Senate seat since 1993, posted on X Tuesday night after Senate Republicans confirmed Benjamin Flowers to a lifetime appointment on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. The problem: Murray called him "Brandon Flowers", the frontman of the alt-rock band The Killers, not the former Ohio Solicitor General and onetime law clerk to the late Justice Antonin Scalia who actually received the appointment from President Donald Trump.

The mix-up handed Senate Republicans an easy layup. The Senate Judiciary GOP's official X account responded with side-by-side photos of the two men and a caption that left little room for confusion. The post had not been deleted as of Wednesday morning, when the Daily Caller reported on the gaffe.

Murray's post attacked a man who wasn't in the room

Murray's full post read:

"Today, Senate Republicans gave a lifetime judicial appointment to anti-abortion extremist Brandon Flowers. This man argued to revive an abortion ban that would go into effect before most women even KNOW they're pregnant. Remember this."

Brandon Flowers, the actual musician, formed The Killers in Los Angeles in 2001. The band's 2004 debut album "Hot Fuss" produced hits like "Mr. Brightside" and "Somebody Told Me." He has no known connection to federal abortion litigation.

Benjamin Flowers, on the other hand, served as Ohio's Solicitor General before his confirmation. The Senate Judiciary Republicans' account described him as "highly-qualified" and noted his clerkship under Scalia, credentials Murray's post ignored entirely while getting his first name wrong.

Murray's characterization of Flowers as an "anti-abortion extremist" who "argued to revive an abortion ban" is her own claim. The specific legal proceeding she referenced was not identified in her post, and no independent details about the case appeared in the reporting.

Senate Judiciary Republicans posted a side-by-side correction

The GOP committee account wasted no time. Its reply included photographs of both men and a deadpan explanation, as Senate Democrats have faced similar committee-level embarrassments in recent months:

"For those confused: Benjamin Flowers (left) is a former Scalia law clerk & state Solicitor General. He's highly-qualified for the lifetime judgeship to which he was just confirmed. Brandon Flowers (right) is the lead vocalist for alt rock band 'The Killers.' Hope this helps!"

Other X users piled on. One commenter, @BasedSavannah, pointed out that the judge's name appeared on the placard in front of him during confirmation proceedings, a detail that, if accurate, would mean Murray had the correct name directly in front of her and still got it wrong.

Another user, @MattWhitlock, offered a simpler question: "Lolol how have you not deleted this."

As of Wednesday morning, Murray apparently had not. No correction or follow-up statement from Murray's office appeared in the reporting.

A 33-year senator who couldn't get the nominee's name right

Murray is not a backbencher. She has served in the U.S. Senate since 1993, following a stint in the Washington State Senate. That makes her one of the longest-serving members of the chamber, and someone who has participated in decades of judicial confirmation fights.

Yet the error was not a minor typo. "Benjamin" and "Brandon" are different names. Confusing the two suggests Murray, or her staff, either copied the wrong name from somewhere or simply did not bother to check before firing off a post designed to generate outrage over a lifetime judicial appointment. The episode fits a broader pattern of Democratic missteps that have compounded the party's difficulties heading into the next election cycle.

The Sixth Circuit covers federal appeals in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee, states where judicial appointments carry significant weight on issues from abortion to regulatory law. Flowers' confirmation gives the court another Trump-appointed judge, and Murray's botched attempt to rally opposition only drew attention to her own carelessness rather than to any substantive concern about the nominee's record.

Senate Democrats have struggled to land effective punches against Trump's judicial nominees this term. High-stakes Senate confrontations have sometimes produced bipartisan rebukes, but confirmation fights have largely gone the GOP's way. Murray's gaffe did not help the cause.

The broader question is whether this kind of sloppy opposition actually undermines Democratic credibility on judicial nominations. When a senator with more than three decades in office cannot get the nominee's first name right in a post accusing him of extremism, the accusation lands with less force. Democrats already face mounting pressure from within their own ranks on a range of issues, and unforced errors like this one do nothing to steady the ship.

If you want voters to take your warnings about a federal judge seriously, getting his name right is the bare minimum. Murray could not clear that bar.