I've always thought that Scalia is the heir-apprarent to Rehnquist. I was so disappointed that Souter turned out to be a liberal, especially since Bush 41 appointed him. I don't think W will make that same mistake. Probably Gonzales will get the nod as the next Justice.
Howard Phillips warned Orrin Hatch, with TV cameras running, that Souter was a corrupt individual. Phillips pointed out that Souter, as a member of the board of a New Hampshire hospital, had voted to perform abortions at that hospital. Phillips argued that that was evidence of a corrupt character--making Souter unfit to serve on the Supreme Court--and evidence of a vested interest in abortion--i.e., that, having personally involved himself in the killing of babies, Souter had a personal interest in maintaining the lie that abortion is a legitimate activity. Hatch tut-tutted and pooh-poohed Phillips, saying that "while I agree with you on the issue of abortion, good people disagree on this issue," and that the only thing the Senate should make judgments about is "judicial philosophy" and professional conduct.
Of course, Phillips was 100% correct on this and Hatch was 100% wrong. Hatch's (and many other "pro-life" Republicans') fatuous, idiotic statement, that "good people disagree" on the subject of baby-killing, was proven, once again, to be the gaseous emission that it is. People who promote baby-killing are evil. Souter was a baby-killer before he got to the Supreme Court, and he has been a baby-killer ever since. If you appoint an intellectually-dishonest, corrupt, violent person to a government job, don't expect him to be something other than an intellectually-dishonest, corrupt, violent government official.