Who would better know
the plight of the oppressed than
Richard Gere's gerbil?!
Posted on 09/27/2005 9:15:47 AM PDT by demlosers
WASHINGTON - As the U.S. Senate began debating the chief justice nomination of John Roberts, President Bush hinted Monday that his next nominee to the Supreme Court likely will be a woman or minority.
"I will pick a person who can do the job," Bush said of his pending nomination to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. "But I am mindful that diversity is one of the strengths of the country."
A vote on Roberts' confirmation is tentatively scheduled for Thursday. It is virtually a done deal, with two-thirds of the Republican-controlled Senate already committed to supporting him.
Bush is expected to name his next nominee shortly after Roberts is confirmed, and Senate leaders have indicated the next choice could be seated before Thanksgiving.
O'Connor will remain until her successor is confirmed, so the Supreme Court will begin its new term Monday with a full bench of nine justices.
Even before the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 13-5 last Thursday to send Roberts' nomination to the full Senate, lawmakers were moving on to the next confirmation hearings, which are widely expected to be a bigger fight.
Roberts' confirmation would essentially replace a conservative, the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist, with another conservative. But the next nominee will succeed O'Connor, a moderate appointee of Ronald Reagan who has been one of the high court's most influential swing voters, often providing the pivotal vote in 5-4 cases on abortion, affirmative action, capital punishment and discrimination.
Choosing a justice in the mold of conservative Justices Antonin Scalia or Clarence Thomas, as Bush has repeatedly vowed to do, would likely move the court dramatically to the right, where it could remain for decades.
Bush may make history by nominating the court's first Hispanic justice. Or he could maintain the court's makeup of seven men and two women.
First lady weighs in Over cheese omelets at the White House last week, Senate leaders offered the president about a dozen names, and he made clear that he could face a filibuster if he chooses a controversial ultraconservative.
First lady Laura Bush also weighed in, as she did before Roberts was nominated. Again, she expressed her wish that her husband choose a woman.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the other woman on the court; other than Justice Clarence Thomas, who is black, the rest of the justices are white.
"I know there are qualified women that are in the pool of people who are being looked at," Laura Bush told the Associated Press.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, one of 14 women in the 100-seat Senate, shares the first lady's hope.
"I do want the next nominee to be a woman," Hutchison told the Houston Chronicle. She added that she would also like to see a Hispanic on the high court bench, but that "all things being equal," she would still favor a woman.
Bush has kept his list of potential nominees mostly to himself. But the names that have been floating among Washington insiders include several women, a few Hispanics and at least one who is both.
Conservative Republicans close to the selection process said former Houstonian Priscilla Owen, seated on the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans in June after controversy about her judicial record, is a top contender, as is her colleague on the court, Houstonian Edith Jones.
U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Consuelo Maria Callahan, also thought to be under consideration, is a Latina.
The list of Latinos includes several Texans — Bush friend and U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales of Houston, and federal appeals judges Emilio Garza and Edward Prado, both of San Antonio. Miguel Estrada, a lawyer nominated but not confirmed to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington, also has conservatives' support.
Dems want 'consultation' Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the Judiciary Committee's top Democrat, supported Roberts. But he warned that Democrats are extremely disappointed in what he called the Bush team's lack of cooperation with the Senate, and that they expect better next time around.
"Roberts' nomination was the result of surprise, not consultation," he said, highlighting the fact that Bush could pick someone who has been left out of the speculation.
Leahy said in Monday's debate that with the controversial war in Iraq and hundreds of thousands of Americans displaced by hurricanes, it's more important than ever for the president to choose as the next nominee someone who won't create deep political divisions.
"The Supreme Court belongs to every American," he said.
Republican senators, along with some Democrats, praised Roberts' legal experience and knowledge. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee called him "the brightest of the bright."
Democrats against Roberts' nomination acknowledged his credentials and said that regardless, they have too many unanswered questions about his commitment to equal rights for minorities and women.
patty.reinert@chron.com
ALF?
Not really. He was being mentioned as a good candidate in the mainstream press (I heard two separate talking head interviews, one on the radio and one on TV) that said he was an ideal candidate, because of his clear intellectual gifts and lack of an attackable track record while on the bench. The conservative media was fixated on more "recognizable", clearly right-wing (and more controversial) candidates, so he wasn't mentioned as much in those circles.
"all things being equal," she would still favor a woman
Either Janic Rogers Brown
Or Priscilla Owens would be fine with me.
Definitely NOT Gonzales!
Ownes or Brown would be Roberts Redux. Though it would be fun to watch the Dems do their tapdance around their Preferred Weapons of Choice: Racism, Sexism, Affirmative Action!
Jack.
Isn't that similar to the remarks that got James Watt in trouble under Reagan?
A country song, mocking PC, that I hope to write someday:
"I'm a Gay Black Mormon Biker, and I vote Republican!"
Cheers!
I don't want any diversity at all in his picks for Supreme Court. I want all originalists, and nothing else. I want all Scalia/Thomas clones. If Scalia and Thomas could have children, those are the ones I want on the bench.
Janice Rogers Brown IS a strict constructionist.
Who are Jewish?
"Consuelo Maria Callahan
Federal Judicial Service:
U. S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Nominated by George W. Bush on February 12, 2003, to a seat vacated by Ferdinand F. Fernandez; Confirmed by the Senate on May 22, 2003, and received commission on May 28, 2003. "
I am sure the libs out in Kalifornia loved this appointment.
Too bloody right. Diversity is NOT a qualification for the Supreme Court. This PC crap makes me puke. Drive the Dems over the cliff. Appoint another Scalia.
Isn't that similar to the remarks that got James Watt in trouble under Reagan?
I believe Watt made a passing reference to "Two Jews and a cripple", grey_whiskers.
President Bush moninating either Janice Brown or Priscilla Owens would throw the Dems into conniptions. While revealing their hypocricy as an added bonus.
Jack
Diversity and 'balance' my patoot. Dubya should follow the "Clinton Standard" and appoint who the 'heck' he wants. That's what Willard did with that PERVERT commie crone Ginsberg as she replaced a conservative. I don't recall any screams for "maintaining balance" then, so screw it, put Luttig on the court and be done with it. The senate rats can go pound sand.
Who would better know
the plight of the oppressed than
Richard Gere's gerbil?!
Ginsburg and Breyer
I think it is either Emilio Garza (5th Circuit) or Karen Williams (4th Circuit), either of whom would be excellent.
And just in case the Whitehouse is lurking, No Gonzales.
There is a big boom for Karen Williams on the online betting sites now. She may be the perfect candidate (a limited paper trail, yet a true conservative).
Not one of those liberals the Democrats are pushing like Consuelo Callahan.
She was appointed to the bench by Bush41, so she has some paper trail - the Dims will demonize her over Miranda. But she's from South Carolina and Gang of 14 Lindsay will go to bat for her.
The choice of Judge Williams is both good strategy and good policy.
Janice Rogers Brown needs to reveal the family secret, that they changed the original family name to avoid anti-Hispanic prejudice, and that her real name is Moreno.
Apparently there are more abortion/controversial cases in the 5th Circuit than the 4th, making judges from the 4th seem to have less defined positions on the hot button issues.
If Williams is the pick now, Luttig could be on deck for the next vacancy.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.