Posted on 06/03/2005 6:04:57 AM PDT by CWW
Feddie Says Rehnquist Stepping Down Steve "Feddie" Dillard, Grand Poobah of Southern Appeal, has revealed that a reliable source has told him that Chief Justice Rehnquist will be stepping down in the next 4 weeks. Feddie is pretty well connected in those circles, so I have no reason to doubt it. Besides that, it's what everyone is expected anyway. He is predicting that Michael McConnell will be the choice to replace him, which is the same person I've been predicting for the last few months. McConnell is solidly conservative, but not in a partisan manner. He's an intellectual conservative, not a political conservative and that carries much weight with me. He has a long track record of scholarship that will provide plenty of fodder for the various liberal advocacy groups, particularly PAW and Americans United, to oppose him. But ultimately, he is confirmable. He has broad support from legal scholars, including many prominent liberals, and he has proven to be a consistent conservative rather than a partisan one (for example, he publicly opposed the impeachment of Bill Clinton and spoke out strongly against the Bush v. Gore Supreme Court decision). Given the other potential choices, McConnell is about as good as liberals or libertarians could expect to get as a nominee given the current configuration.
The more interesting speculation comes in the comments in response to Feddie's post. One commenter, citing his own unnamed sources, seemed to imply that McConnell would be named directly to the Chief Justice position because Clarence Thomas had told the administration that he didn't want to go through another confirmation fight (I find that entirely plausible) and that Scalia was viewed as too divisive within the court (also entirely plausible). Very interesting. Expect a long hot summer of fevered rhetoric.
http://www.southernappeal.blogspot.com/
McConnel is a great legal mind, was confirmed easily to the Court of Appeals and will be a great nominee to the SCOTUS.
Let's get on with it. Nuke the filibuster!
Thanks for the report. I've never heard of this site, though. Reliable, as far as you know?
McConnell for Chief Justice is interesting. I'm not surprised that Thomas would decline for the reasons stated, but, I don't understand Scalia being passed over.
Should be hard for dems to raise a stink over McConnell since they confirmed him in the last 4 years.
Let's GET IT ON!
Do we really need that?
This won't exactly bring a ringing endorsement from conservatives. I will believe this article when it happens and not before. It's speculation at this point on the part of the writer.
Sounds like another David Souter to me.
My hunch is that he didn't like the courts getting involved at all. On that, I agree with him whole heartedly. He probably had a problem with the 5-4 part.
Personally I'm hoping for Luttig instead.
Another David Souter is the last person we need on SCOTUS.
The Supremes were basically cleaning up the mess the FL courts made.
Scalia is Near 70.
You want someone far younger in the CJ slot.
What's his view of the Second Amendment??
And why did he have a problem with the impeachment of the slimeball??
I'm very suspicious of these appointees - all of them.
There have been many a "conservative" appointee like Kennedy, Souter and Warren who changed into liberals in the utopianist milieu of Washington.
I can't EVER recall the reverse.
Scalia and Thomas have proven track records in my mind.
Yes but the fact is that the FL courts did make a mess of it and were about to AWARD the Presidency to Gore. If there was ever a time for the FEDS to step in, it was then, and I thank God for it every single day!
True.
Now, I'd like to know why McConnell opposed the Bush v Gore decision. I'll study his decisions to form a better opinion of him.
The Supremes had no choice but to take the case, and a 7-2 majority agreed. Their alternative was to let a rogue FL Supreme Court trampel all over the rights of the Floridians and their legislature.
Long hot summer? I don't think so.
I think Frist will allow a reasonalbe amount of debate, call for cloture when required, and nuke 'em till they glow when the 'Rats try to filibuster. Shouldn't take all that long.
Picking a Chief Justice from the existing court would require two confirmation hearings, and for what? The Chief Justice exercises no more influence on what cases are heard than any other justice. His voice carries no more weight. In matters of law he is one voice among equals. He enters first and votes first. If in the majority he decided who writes the majority opinion. But other than that all he gets is a higher salary and the additional responsibility of being in charge of the building and grounds.
it stems from the courrts reasoning. Having hung the decision on the standardless recounts, McConnell felt the proper thing to do was to Remand it back to FLA for a recount that met constitutional stndards.
The filibuster needs to done away with on the same day he is nominated. No more mister nice guy.
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