The fact is there are plenty in differing fields of life that can read and understand what was meant by our Founding Fathers (that is part of the brilliance of what they put together!). Actually, I think you're right. There are a lot of people here on FR that show a keen understanding of constitutional law, much more than I, and it's my periodic hobby. I note that they're not lawyers, either.
I've talked with a number of lawyers and noticed that the general working lawyer knows very little about the constitution, even the one for his state.
Now, there are a lot of other knowledge and skills that would be necessary to be a judge, but that lack is covered by another legal profession, law clerks and paralegals.
You said: I've talked with a number of lawyers and noticed that the general working lawyer knows very little about the constitution, even the one for his state.
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You are right. The vast majority of lawyers work in areas of the law that do not implicate the constitution and supreme court decisions on a day-to-day basis. I do lender representation and zoning law, and while zoning law has a fair number of constitutional considerations, I am not called upon to deal with them with any great frequency. I have never had to deal, for example, with commerce clause issues. I have only once or twice in 18 years had any cause to examine the state constitution.
That said, I got up to speed on con law in lawyer school in one semester, and I believe I could conduct the research and do the analysis required to interpret constitutional issues in good fashion, although I confess that I would learn as my experience progressed on the court.
I respect Robert Bork, however. He is an amazing intellect. The Tempting of America is absolutely brilliant. His remarks give me pause on Miers' nomination. I remain concerned, however, about the public nature of the apparent anger I have seen in response to the nomination, which suggests something other than true concern about Miers' qualifications. I still think that many opponents of Miers simply want the bloodbath and defeat of the democrats on the nomination issue. It is tempting to want that, but Pres. Bush has never been that way. His goal is to win, meaning to get conservatives on the court. That is a reasonable goal, one that can be achieved with Miers, given the current composition (or lack of it) of the Senate.