4/5: SCOTUS Speculation
Now that Justice John Paul Stevens is hinting that he may retire this year, liberal bloggers are beginning to discuss his potential replacements. The netroots aren't excited about any of the SCOTUS candidates on Pres. Obama's alleged short list, which consists of Solicitor Gen. Elena Kagan, U.S. Court of Appeals judge Diane Wood (7th Circuit), and U.S. Court of Appeals judge Merrick Garland (D.C. Circuit). Dylan Matthews wishes that Obama would consider more aggressive choices such as Stanford Law profs. Pam Karlan and Kathleen Sullivan:
"[T]he fact that the field has closed this quickly is dispiriting. Given that Ruth Bader Ginsberg is the only justice other than Stevens expected to retire soon, Obama will likely not be able to replace a moderate or conservative justice. If he picks moderate liberals, he'll have a holding pattern but little more. The court won't move rightward, but the liberal bloc won't gain significantly."
What else is happening in the blogosphere?
- The liberal bloggers at Firedoglake (Levine, Walker) are disgusted that SD Dems and nat'l Dems failed to find a candidate to challenge Sen. John Thune (R-SD). Conservative blogger Jim Geraghty quips: "So much for the top of the ticket helping out Democrat Stephanie Herseth-Sandlin in the state's House race."
- Liberal bloggers (Klein, digby) continue to raise money for ex-GA state Sen. Regina Thomas (D), who's challenging Rep. John Barrow (D-GA). Meanwhile, conservative blogger Robert Stacy McCain reports that "some Georgia Republicans now believe that [Barrow] may be contemplating a switch to the GOP."
- Conservative bloggers (Allahpundit, Lane, Reynolds) are criticizing Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) for saying: "The Tea Party people are kind of, without robes and hoods, they have really shown a very hardcore angry side of America that is against any type of diversity."
- Conservative bloggers (Breitbart, Steyn, Johnson, Althouse) are accusing three cong. Dems -- Reps. Andre Carson (D-IN), John Lewis (D-GA), and Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) -- of falsely claiming that Tea Party protesters shouted racial epithets at them as they walked to the Capitol on 3/20. John Hinderaker calls it "the biggest scandal of the past year."
- RedState editor Erick Erickson declares that "it serves no good purpose to try to oust [RNC Chair] Michael Steele right now." Erickson continues: "We go into the election with the army we have, not the one we would prefer. We go with Michael Steele and [Senate Min. Leader] Mitch McConnell and the rest, so suck it up and deal with it."
SCOTUS: Think Bigger, Mr. President!
Liberal bloggers aren't too excited about the SCOTUS candidates on Obama's alleged short list:
TalkLeft's Jeralyn Merritt is critical of all three frontrunners -- especially Garland: "Taking a look at the names most frequently mentioned as a possible replacement for Justice John Paul Stevens who is widely expected to retire this year or next, prospects aren't looking good for progressives. [...] Republicans are trying to influence the decision already, promising 'bruising battles' and saying Garland is his best bet. Why does Obama have to play it safe? He's already got his 'signature issue' -- the health care vote -- behind him. He really has an opportunity here to effect some change, one that could last decades. I hope he doesn't throw it away. And can we please have someone who didn't spend decades working for the Justice Department?"
The Washington Post's Matthews prefers Wood over Garland and Kagan, but wishes that Obama would opt for a more aggressive choice: "Wood would be my preference, given as she is the clearest of the three in calling for the Constitution to be interpreted in historical context and in a way that allows for the provision of unwritten rights. [...] That being said, the fact that the field has closed this quickly is dispiriting. Given that Ruth Bader Ginsberg is the only justice other than Stevens expected to retire soon, Obama will likely not be able to replace a moderate or conservative justice. If he picks moderate liberals, he'll have a holding pattern but little more. The court won't move rightward, but the liberal bloc won't gain significantly. There are two ways around this. Obama could appoint a real William Brennan/Thurgood Marshall style liberal to the Court. [...] A nominee like Pam Karlan or Kathleen Sullivan would be closer to this mold, and could move the court's center significantly leftward."
Matthews continues: "Alternately, Obama could appoint a politician capable of whipping votes on the court more effectively than a typical nominee. The model here would be Earl Warren, whose background as governor of California some credit with giving him a knack for gaining the votes of fellow justices. The hope would be that a nominee coming from a political career -- retiring Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick are the obvious options here -- would be better able to persuade Anthony Kennedy to form a majority with the court's liberals."
Meanwhile, Balloon Juice's John Cole criticizes Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) for saying "that if Stevens waited a year [to retire], there would be a greater chance for consensus among senators": "I can't think of one single advantage to waiting a year for Stevens to retire. The chances for gridlock are even greater next year, because the Democrats are going to lose seats, and the Republicans are going to think the appropriate response to picking up seats is more obstruction. I have no idea what Specter is thinking."
BooMan, on the other hand, agrees with Specter: "I kind of wish he'd wait [to retire], but it looks like we'll have fewer senators to confirm a replacement next year than we have now. Stevens is the most important liberal member of the bench, and replacing him with someone liberal is an important goal. However, in an election year, the Republicans are sure to attempt a filibuster of any nominee we put up (for fundraising purposes, if nothing else)."
On the right side of the blogosphere, RedState's James Richardson writes that Garland "may yet be the most moderate nominee for which conservatives can hope."
THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Obama's SCOTUS Thinking
The Atlantic's Marc Ambinder:
"Obama made sure that Garland was vetted, and interviewed both Kagan and Wood last year, but he had his heart set on Sonia Sotomayor from the beginning, and used the vetting process as a way of testing his own heart against the thoughts and feelings of his advisers. The legal cognoscenti believes that Kagan, the solicitor general, has the inside track, with some folks swearing that Obama has already decided on her, and that he'll simply go through the motions again. It's not unreasonable to assume that Obama had his SCOTUS picks mapped out from the beginning of his presidency: the guy is a student of the Court, and he has a very particular theory of the types of justices that would best ensure that his vision for the court is appropriately articulated.
Sotomayor's pick was about changing the narrative. The second pick will be about adding some intellectual creativity to the mix. One reason he might not pick an appeals court judge this time is that appeals court judges tend to constrain themselves to precedent a bit more than Obama believes is necessary, while long-serving district court judges, or academics, are likely to be more expansive in how they approach the job. [...]
Ideally, he's looking for someone who can persuade swinger (uh, swing-ideological justice) Anthony Kennedy to change his mind on a set of issues, someone whose qualifications are beyond approach, who doesn't have a lingering paper trail of outrageous (i.e., conventionally liberal) viewpoints, and yet someone he trusts can subtly steer the court to the left. The complication here is that Stevens is the conscience of the court's liberal wing, and space he occupies now is not a space that any nominee simply fills. So growth capacity -- the potential to grow into a Stevens -- will factor in, too."
LEST WE FORGET: iPad Wins Nobel Peace Prize
The Huffington Post's Andy Borowitz:
"OSLO, NORWAY (The Borowitz Report) -- In a remarkable break with tradition, the committee that awards the Nobel Peace Prize chose today to bestow that coveted honor on the Apple iPad.
It was believed to be the first time an electronic device has won the Peace Prize, which is usually awarded to a human being, experts say.
'We didn't want to fall prey to all of the hype surrounding the iPad,' said Nobel committee chairperson Gustav Traavik, who waited at the Apple store in Oslo for over two hours to buy the device. 'But it is sweet.'"
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