...and she was elected by the people of California (not known for their right-wing leanings) multiple times.
Not your typical Bush nominee, I'm afraid. The trouble with Brown is that she's a proven conservative and the President is bound to meet with intense resistance to her nomination.
I'm reminded of the classic western flick where the heroine employs some inept fellows to protect her ranch from bad guys. One of them promises her, "We'll stay and do what we can---long as there ain't no trouble." This President will keep his promise to appoint the right judges, just as long as they don't make any trouble for him in the Senate.
The right man won in 2004 and nothing can detract from his achievements in foreign affairs, but a man who couldn't even veto McCain-Feingold is very likely to disappoint us. I am sadly confident he will pick a moderate for the seat vacated by O'Connor.