Friday, July 01, 2005

O'Connor retires

In what I consier quite a shocker, Sandra Day O'Connor has retired. The crucial centrist swing vote in the vast majority of recent 5-4 decisions, O'Connor's resignation and Bush's likely appointment of a justice in the mold of Scalia is likely to significantly alter the balance of power on the court.

This should be a real test of the recent compromise over judicial nominees. What, exactly, would constitute the "exceptional circumstances" that will cause Democrats to fillibuster Bush's first SCOTUS nominee?

3 Comments:

Blogger Justin said...

No one has an opinion on the SCOTUS nomination?

Anyone have a prediction? Is Bush going to go with Gonzales or is he going to go with a more hard core right winger? Would the Democrats in the Senate see Gonzales as a compromise candidate or would his nomination come down to a party line vote again?

7/05/2005 04:40:00 PM  
Blogger Vincent said...

Gonzales is an awful choice because the right-wingers think he's too liberal and the left-wingers think he's pro-torture. Only a political idiot would nominate Gonzales. Ergo, W will nominate Gonzales.

The real issue is as follows: When will Ben start a Tour de France post? :-)

7/05/2005 11:26:00 PM  
Blogger Justin said...

But isn't that exactly why Gonzales makes sense? The left will object, the right will object, and Bush can claim the center with a relatively conservtive nominee? He can certainly pick someone a notch or two further right to shore up the right wing, but that almost forces the Democrats into a fillibuster and sucks up the rest of the second term agenda.

And I am disappointed not to have read anything here about the Tour.

7/06/2005 02:03:00 AM  

Post a Comment

<< Home