Sam Spagnola commented correctly several days ago that picking Justice David Souter was the biggest mistake President George H.W. Bush made. Now we learn that Souter is retiring.
Souter is a judicial activist, and he will likely be replaced by a judicial activist.
I am not sure why he is retiring at this time. But I wonder whether he may have timed his retirement so that his replacement would be nominated after Obama took office. Remember, Souter was a Republican appointment, and had been recommended strongly by the elder John Sununu to the elder President Bush.
Update:
As Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has pointed out, a judge who decides cases based on her personal and political views, instead of what the law says, will have a hard time fulfilling her oath to dispense justice impartially. Senators have a constitutional duty to rigorously scrutinize the nominee on this score, and vote "no" if the nominee cannot establish that she will follow the law, rather than her own values and beliefs, as the President has suggested.
The timing of this announcement on the heels of Specter's defection is questionable, as to be suspect. Specter doesn't quite make the 60th vote needed to gain cloture, but perhaps there is another reliable RINO out there? If not, Frankenstein is lurking (Def: to lie in wait in a place of concealment especially for an evil purpose) in the wings
In any event, we know that Obama's nominee will be far left, but since they would be replacing Souter, it really doesn't change the lean of the court at this time. Of course, if Obama holds office for 8 years, he will potentially be able to pack the S.C. with far left liberals, if not socialists, by the end of his term. At the age of 84, Justice Rehnquist stands as the heartbeat away from the Liberal Dems holding every branch of the federal government, not to mention a radically activist court Pray for Justice Rehnquist's good health and long life.
Posted by: Stormy | May 01, 2009 at 01:26 PM
He's dead, you know.
Posted by: sam johnson | May 01, 2009 at 06:01 PM
Man, what a zinger! Sam, you just made me laugh out loud.
I love Stormy but I think her Google-fu failed her.
Posted by: jaycee | May 01, 2009 at 09:48 PM
Oh well, Roberts is a good man. Pray for him. Heck, pray for all of them.
Posted by: sam johnson | May 02, 2009 at 04:02 PM