Orin Hatch was helpful to Bill Clinton that way (making sure the president didn’t nominate a too-far to the left person for SCOTUS). It was Hatch who came up with Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s name.
Yes, but Orin was a really snappy dresser. OTOH, I too would resist letting him pick Supreme Court nominees. It's not a perfect system and mistakes get made all the time. I remember a guy named Roberts that we all though was terrific ...