Souter To Retire from USSC.

[Siege]

Headache.

[Admiral Yi]

Obama had an interesting statement about his search criteria.  First independent and strong mind mind blah blah.  But then a person who looks at more than abstract legal theories but also considers the impacts on regular people, their jobs, homes, safety etc.

[Hansmeister]

Obama had an interesting statement about his search criteria.  First independent and strong mind mind blah blah.  But then a person who looks at more than abstract legal theories but also considers the impacts on regular people, their jobs, homes, safety etc.

"Interesting" is one way to put it.  He basically stated that he wants his candidate to ignore the law.

[Valmy]

Well it will be interesting to see how the next USSC appointment war ends up.

[Valmy]

This just won't be as fun when the minority can't threaten to filibuster.

Ah crap you are right.  Well hopefully some Senator will say something hilariously stupid during the confirmation hearings to keep it fun at least.

[katmai]

Obama had an interesting statement about his search criteria.  First independent and strong mind mind blah blah.  But then a person who looks at more than abstract legal theories but also considers the impacts on regular people, their jobs, homes, safety etc.

"Interesting" is one way to put it.  He basically stated that he wants his candidate to ignore the law.

[MadImmortalMan]

This just won't be as fun when the minority can't threaten to filibuster.

Ah crap you are right.  Well hopefully some Senator will say something hilariously stupid during the confirmation hearings to keep it fun at least.

With Specter switched now, the one guaranteed vote in committee is gone. There has to be one GOP vote in favor, and he was supposed to be it. I think Graham is on the Judicial Committee, so maybe there's hope. It would have been easier if Specter hadn't switched in this case.

[AnchorClanker]

I don't think Souter leaving, and being replaced by the Obama admin will have much effect on the SC ideology? Seems to me that he's pretty liberal and will be replaced by same.

He's considered a liberal due to the company he has at work... most would be liberal next to Scalia and Alito.
Souter's an old-school NE mellow Republican, and his conservatism wasn't marked by rigid ideological principles,
but a reluctance to 'innovate' from the bench (left or right), and by his reverence for precedence.  He was a classic
'c'conservative without being a 'C'onservative, which seems to confuse people, and the hooplah about him being a
'stealth' candidate for Poppa Bush.

[grumbler]

This just won't be as fun when the minority can't threaten to filibuster.

Ah crap you are right.  Well hopefully some Senator will say something hilariously stupid during the confirmation hearings to keep it fun at least.

Well, since the Democratic leadership is at least as boneheaded as the old republican leadership, we can always hope for a Majority Filibuster!  The Republican one was a real hoot!

[Valmy]

Well, since the Democratic leadership is at least as boneheaded as the old republican leadership, we can always hope for a Majority Filibuster!  The Republican one was a real hoot!

[Sheilbh]

He's considered a liberal due to the company he has at work... most would be liberal next to Scalia and Alito.
Souter's an old-school NE mellow Republican, and his conservatism wasn't marked by rigid ideological principles,
but a reluctance to 'innovate' from the bench (left or right), and by his reverence for precedence.  He was a classic
'c'conservative without being a 'C'onservative, which seems to confuse people, and the hooplah about him being a
'stealth' candidate for Poppa Bush.

I always wonder about how much a judge's ideology is based on the big political issues that only occassionally come before the Supreme Court and how much on the plethora of smaller, important cases that aren't perceived as 'political'.

I like that Souter's dream is to run a class based on comparative readings of Proust and Henry Adams