Tuesday round-up – part two

By Adam Schlossman
on Apr 13, 2010 at 12:56 pm

The Wall Street Journal profiles the list of potential nominees under consideration by the White House.  Anne Kornblut and Robert Barnes of the Washington Post discuss the administration’s list here.  ABC News reports that the White House plans to select a nominee by early May and briefly profiles some of the candidates on the administration’s short list.  TIME also discusses the short list, as well as the possibility that the next nominee may come from “inside [or] outside [the] judicial monastery.” The Associated Press reports on the “short list” and the possibility that the tea party movement could play a role in opposing the eventual nominee.

The WSJ Law Blog reacts to the AP report, highlighting the White House’s acknowledgement that Hillary Clinton is not on the list of potential nominees; the  Caucus blog of the New York Times, the Washington Post’s Voices, and Politico also discuss Clinton’s absence from the list.  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution discusses in greater depth Leah Ward Sears, the former Chief Justice of the Georgia Supreme Court. AmLaw Daily briefly discusses the possible nominees on the short list, while the Ninth Justice includes a “long list” of potential nominees.  Slate identifies twenty-one potential nominees and asks readers to vote.

According to the Ninth Justice, Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy met with Justice Stevens and “urged” him to retire in April.   FoxNews.com reports that Stevens’ replacement might set the stage for a “proxy war over the leadership of Chief Justice John Roberts.”

At Slate, Rick Hasen comments on the politics surrounding the Stevens retirement, examines the impact of a possible retirement of Justice Antonin Scalia in the coming years, and analyzes the possibility of the conservative court energizing the liberal base for future elections.  “It wouldn’t hurt the president,” Hasen writes, “if the court soon decided a few more 5-4 unpopular decisions, so that the stakes of a conservative Justice retirement are ever clearer to Obama’s supporters on the left.” Ashby Jones, from the WSJ Blog, reacts to Hasen’s article.

The National Journal conducted an informal poll of Supreme Court experts, who predicted that current Solicitor General Elena Kagan will be nominated to succeed Stevens, while the Conglomerate suggests that the Republicans’ efforts to block Kagan’s nomination to the D.C. Circuit during the Clinton Administration had, in fact, made her a stronger Supreme Court nominee.  Jess Bravin at the Wall Street Journal writes that Kagan’s opponents are “homing in on a high-profile stand she took on gay rights as a centerpiece of their opposition” if she is nominated.

TIME reviews the history of Supreme Court appointments, noting that George Washington appointed the most (ten), followed by FDR with nine.

Tuan Samahon at Concurring Opinions discusses campaign finance, judicial elections, and the possible implications of Justice Stevens’ retirement.

In lighter news, The Philadelphia Daily News interviews Justice Alito on his devotion to the Philadelphia Phillies.  Above the Law continues the discussion here.