President Bush announced he would nominate John G. Roberts Jr. as the 17th Chief Justice of the United States, replacing the late William Rehnquist.
Roberts is likely to be confirmed quickly and without much of a fight. He's been out there meeting with senators for several weeks, since the president nominated him to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in July. He's a conservative, a former clerk for Rehnquist who will keep his legacy alive.
As for O'Connor, she gets a contract extension, if you will. Her retirement letter indicated she would serve until her replacement had been confirmed. Since Roberts will now replace Rehnquist, it means if he is confirmed this month, the court will open its term in October with a full complement, including O'Connor. That also gives Bush a chance to search for another associate justice -- perhaps a woman or a person of color -- while looking decisive and in control today as he moves Roberts into a new position.
Apparently, Bush had this idea in mind in case the situation came into being.
The autumn SCOTUS Watch just got very interesting.
-- Seattle
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment