“I wonder if the Founding Fathers ever realized that having the chief executive pick such judges really defeats separation of powers, since the judicial branch then becomes an extension of the executive branch?”
The separation of powers is with the Senate. The problem is the Senate has pretty much become a rubber stamp for any judicial nominees the POTUS throws it’s way. Or at least that’s the case when it comes to Democratic Presidents. The Senate does have the power to reject any nominee at any time.
It’s still a little too close to characteristics of the Soviet and European Union systems. Even if the Senate rejects one candidate, the President will still appoint another he approves of, until he can get enough Senators on his side. The judicial branch thereby does not become properly divorced from the executive branch.
<Orin Hatch>