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Obama Will Change Balance on Courts Quickly
newsmax.com ^ | November 12, 2008 | Ronald Kessler

Posted on 11/13/2008 5:55:35 AM PST by kellynla

It’s a given that Barack Obama will change the balance on the courts to a liberal judicial outlook. What is surprising is how quickly he could do that.

Because Democrats dragged their heels on President Bush’s judicial nominations, 14 seats are open on appeals courts or will be by the end of January. Democratic nominees now are a majority on only one of the 13 federal appeals courts, the ultra-liberal U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco. Within four years, Obama could name enough judges to give Democrats a majority on nine of the 13 appeals courts.

On the Supreme Court, five justices are older than 70. The first likely to retire is Justice John Paul Stevens, who is 88. Ruth Bader Ginsburg is 75. Justice David Souter, who will turn 70 next year, is known to be unhappy living in Washington. Assuming Obama is re-elected, Justices Antonin Scalia and Anthony Kennedy will be 80 by his second term.

Thus, Obama will be able to name several Supreme Court justices. Given that Democrats hold a majority of the Senate, Obama will have little trouble obtaining confirmation of his appointees. A simple majority of the Senate confirms judicial appointments.

(Excerpt) Read more at newsmax.com ...


TOPICS: Editorial; Extended News; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 111th; bho2008; courts; filibuster; judges; judiciary; obama; obamatransitionfile
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1 posted on 11/13/2008 5:55:35 AM PST by kellynla
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To: kellynla

Take THAT all you “conservatives” who stayed home or voted third party.


2 posted on 11/13/2008 5:57:33 AM PST by allmendream (Wealth is EARNED not distributed.... so how could it be Redistributed?)
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To: kellynla

Heel dragging by Dems kept Bush’s appointments off the bench, eh?

Well, if the Repubs have ANY cajones at ALL, they’ll return the favor.

Gridlock is better than further movement to the left.


3 posted on 11/13/2008 5:57:39 AM PST by WayneS (HELP! My beloved Commonwealth is becoming MARYLAND!)
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To: allmendream

They were warned about this, weren’t they? ;-(


4 posted on 11/13/2008 5:58:48 AM PST by SumProVita ("Cogito ergo sum pro vita." .....updated Descartes)
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To: WayneS

YEP. Althought it will be difficult becauses we are much worse condition than 2007 in Senate, GWB hung on last two years to make things more difficult. We have some elections cming up Georgia, Alaska (Palin??), those will tell us democrats are still on the upswing.


5 posted on 11/13/2008 6:03:06 AM PST by sickoflibs ( Those who don't learn from (real big) mistakes are losers forever)
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To: WayneS
Well, if the Repubs have ANY cajones at ALL, they’ll return the favor.

Worth repeating.

6 posted on 11/13/2008 6:04:15 AM PST by gieriscm (07 FFL / 02 SOT - www.extremefirepower.com)
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To: SumProVita
I think they feel it was better to ‘keep their hands clean’ or ‘teach the party a lesson’ than to lower their high and mighty selves to cast a vote for McCain/Palin.
7 posted on 11/13/2008 6:04:35 AM PST by allmendream (Wealth is EARNED not distributed.... so how could it be Redistributed?)
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To: kellynla

He also will have America FUBAR.


8 posted on 11/13/2008 6:05:28 AM PST by Piquaboy (22 year veteran of the Army, Air Force and Navy, Pray for all our military .)
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To: kellynla
You mean a President Hussein Obama will FIRE ALL The US Attorneys just like the last Democrat President?

Oh. My. God. !!

And the current Republican President is investigated for firing just one?

9 posted on 11/13/2008 6:05:38 AM PST by TexasCajun
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To: WayneS
Heel dragging by Dems kept Bush’s appointments off the bench, eh?

John McCain's intervention in the use of the nuclear option kept Bush's appointments off the bench.

Well, if the Repubs have ANY cajones at ALL, they’ll return the favor.

By the time the all of the manufactured votes are counted in the outstanding Senate Races, Republicans will not have enough votes to prevent anything no matter how large their stones are.

Another big thank you to John Mccain, the gift that just keeps giving.

10 posted on 11/13/2008 6:05:38 AM PST by CMAC51
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To: allmendream

Whatever their reason, it was likely emotional and NOT logical. Now THEY will be the ones to learn the hard way.


11 posted on 11/13/2008 6:09:39 AM PST by SumProVita ("Cogito ergo sum pro vita." .....updated Descartes)
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To: allmendream
"I think they feel it was better to ‘keep their hands clean’ or ‘teach the party a lesson’ than to lower their high and mighty selves to cast a vote for McCain/Palin."

But...but...but "good Conservatives" told me that if we let Obama and the Left DESTROY America, it would be good for us...are you telling me they might have been WRONG?/s

12 posted on 11/13/2008 6:10:21 AM PST by EnigmaticAnomaly ("Democrats: Seeking an easy life at someone else's expense for 150 years")
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To: P-Marlowe; enat; narses; Salvation; wagglebee; Jim Robinson

This is sobering, and our lame candidate, John McCain, never made it an issue.

It’s amazing how incompetent he was....or how complicit in a liberal victory he was.

We worked for years just to get the Scotus even, and then the Republican Majority stabbed us in the back. They had it in their hands to make lasting change and they did worse than blow it. They became criminal thieves, competent in theft, and incompetent at advancing any conservative cause. Even the tax cuts were temporary. All a chimera.

Babies murdered, the sicknesses associated with homosexuality, and the dismantling of our national security, will result from the treachery of the Republican Party.

Only God can guide us through this chaos. There’s got to be a better answer than the Republicans.


13 posted on 11/13/2008 6:11:44 AM PST by xzins (Retired Army Chaplain Pro Deo et Patria)
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To: kellynla

it is not the USSC we have to fear,

the USSC hears VERY FEW cases.

we have to worry about the Ninth Circus court spreading.

If anything the Ninth should be divided into three.


14 posted on 11/13/2008 6:13:04 AM PST by longtermmemmory (VOTE! http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov)
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To: allmendream
Take THAT all you “conservatives” who stayed home or voted third party.

Yep. elections have consequences and if I were justice Roberts or Thomas, I'd reassess my personal security

15 posted on 11/13/2008 6:15:15 AM PST by fso301
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To: allmendream

Tell it to God, since *He* is the one who establishes rulers (and/or Presidents) and builds up or takes down countries. It’s something that was in God’s hands, regardless of who voted what and who sat it out...

I, personally, am accountable to God for the actions I take, and then God takes care of the other stuff. I do one small part on my own— God takes care of nations and presidents and rules and societies (along with individuals, too).

It’s all in God’s hands and He knows best and sometimes He deals out punishment for the wrongs that society chooses. Obama can definitely be looked at as divine punishment upon this land, by God’s hands...


16 posted on 11/13/2008 6:16:33 AM PST by Star Traveler
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To: kellynla
If Stevens, Ginsburg and Souter retire and are replaced with leftist justices, the balance of the Court will NOT change. However, the ages of Scalia and Kennedy MAY pose a problem if the Senate remains in rat hands after the 2010 election.
17 posted on 11/13/2008 6:16:44 AM PST by Roccus (Someday it'll all make sense.............maybe.)
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To: kellynla

I can only hope that there are some closet conservatives that Obama will appoint, or that they will come to a different “opinion” once they are “on the court” (which seems to happen a lot...).


18 posted on 11/13/2008 6:17:42 AM PST by Star Traveler
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To: allmendream
"Take THAT all you “conservatives” who stayed home or voted third party."

Amen, amen. Yell it from the mountain tops.

The stupid all or nothing cut off their nose to spite their face conservatives that stayed home are dumber than the GOP. Freepers constantly like to trash the GOP as being the dumb party, yet the stay at home conservatives and the third party voters are actually the dumbest SOBs on the planet. They would rather have nothing in conservatism by putting the democrats in power in the House, Senate and POTUS, then voting for a flawed candidate.
19 posted on 11/13/2008 6:18:58 AM PST by jrooney
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To: longtermmemmory
If anything the Ninth should be divided into three.

I agree. And the best way to do that fairly is to take each of the justices on the court and divide him/her in three equal parts.

Just applying a minor variation of Solomon's approach.

20 posted on 11/13/2008 6:43:43 AM PST by 17th Miss Regt
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