O'Connor steps down from High Court
Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court, has announced her retirement in a letter to President George W. Bush. O'Connor sat on the Court for 24 years. This sets up Bush's first opportunity to make a Supreme Court appointment.
I think O'Connor was a voice of moderation that will be greatly missed on the court. While I certainly didn't agree with all her opinions and votes, I believe that O'Connor provided an important bridge between the court's extreme right wing (Scalia and Thomas) and more liberal justices such as Breyer and Ginsberg. Often swayed by pragmatic arguments, O'Connor rarely came across as an ideologue bent on forcing the facts of cases to conform to her pre-existing view of the world. This is, to me, a vital part of being a judge and an ability that is severely lacking in Thomas and Scalia, two justices that Bush has said he admires most.
O'Connor's departure signals the beginning of what will probably be the biggest political fight of Bush's second term in office. Because of O'Connor's role as one of the Court's leading moderates and "swing voters," appointing someone substantially to the left or right would dramatically shift the balance of power. As a result, moderates and liberals in the Senate will bitterly fight anyone who they regard as too conservative.
In addition, interest groups on both the left and right have been salivating for this fight ever since Bush was elected. Any nominee is going to receive exceptional scrutiny.
One way out of this fight might be for Bush to appoint Alberto Gonzales, currently the Attorney General. Other than some blips in his record regarding terrorism suspects, he is a solid moderate. While conservatives wouldn't be thrilled by the choice, Senate Democrats would likely be fairly happy with the choice, knowing that Gonzales would not dramatically shift the Court's balance. This would give Bush some breathing room and allow him to pick a more conservative nominee if Chief Justice William Rehnquist retires soon (which would not be surprising, given his current fight with thyroid cancer). Since Rehnquist has been reliably conservative, Democrats would probably not be as opposed to his replacement with another conservative.
However, Bush has never shown a propensity for taking a politically feasible alternative it might alienate his far-right base, and I wouldn't count on it happening here either.
I think O'Connor was a voice of moderation that will be greatly missed on the court. While I certainly didn't agree with all her opinions and votes, I believe that O'Connor provided an important bridge between the court's extreme right wing (Scalia and Thomas) and more liberal justices such as Breyer and Ginsberg. Often swayed by pragmatic arguments, O'Connor rarely came across as an ideologue bent on forcing the facts of cases to conform to her pre-existing view of the world. This is, to me, a vital part of being a judge and an ability that is severely lacking in Thomas and Scalia, two justices that Bush has said he admires most.
O'Connor's departure signals the beginning of what will probably be the biggest political fight of Bush's second term in office. Because of O'Connor's role as one of the Court's leading moderates and "swing voters," appointing someone substantially to the left or right would dramatically shift the balance of power. As a result, moderates and liberals in the Senate will bitterly fight anyone who they regard as too conservative.
In addition, interest groups on both the left and right have been salivating for this fight ever since Bush was elected. Any nominee is going to receive exceptional scrutiny.
One way out of this fight might be for Bush to appoint Alberto Gonzales, currently the Attorney General. Other than some blips in his record regarding terrorism suspects, he is a solid moderate. While conservatives wouldn't be thrilled by the choice, Senate Democrats would likely be fairly happy with the choice, knowing that Gonzales would not dramatically shift the Court's balance. This would give Bush some breathing room and allow him to pick a more conservative nominee if Chief Justice William Rehnquist retires soon (which would not be surprising, given his current fight with thyroid cancer). Since Rehnquist has been reliably conservative, Democrats would probably not be as opposed to his replacement with another conservative.
However, Bush has never shown a propensity for taking a politically feasible alternative it might alienate his far-right base, and I wouldn't count on it happening here either.
posted by N at 4:13 PM
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