NEW ADDITION TO THE CHEAT SHEET:
*Note, I’m adding a bit more on Cornyn with him being the new addition to the list, as well as rumors circulating of him being called into meetings with the administration, and a marked scurrying among his staff. It seems very likely that Cornyn will be the nominee, and that it will be announced on Tuesday. I grabbed some information on his voting record and political past from Issues2000 website as a starting point.
Well, the word around the Internet is that Chief Supreme Court Justice William H. Rehnquist will be retiring some time this week. Having a 33 year tenure in the Supreme Court, he began as an Associate Justice in 1971, and became Chief Justice in 1986. Rehnquist is said to be retiring due to his struggle with thyroid cancer that he has been battling for the past year which has left him weakened to the point that he is getting nourishment through a feeding tube after having gone through a tracheotomy procedure earlier this year. A long time adversary of the left, Rehnquist’s position as a radically conservative judge brings up the instantly heated debate over who will take his place.
The talk being bandied about is one of weighing political opportunity in conjunction with conservative ideologies. While it remains to be seen whether the attempt to gather both hispanic and fundamentalist votes will take precedent, the ‘short list’ of speculated nominations has a variety in ethnicity and gender, but seems to lack variety when it comes to religious conservativism. No big surprise there.
There also has been floating rumors about the potential re-nomination of Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, this time for Chief Justice. However, it seems unlikely due to age and also past controversies that would immediately come to the foreground.
So with this new development, and the likely controversy we will be seeing in the days to come, I’ve prepared a liberal cheat-sheet for people to peruse, use and abuse at their own discretion. While obviously there is far more information available than what I’ve posted, I’ve tried to focus on issues that I think liberals in particular will find enlightening, interesting and most definitely frightening with regards to the uncertain future of the Supreme Court.
John Cornyn
Current Position:
– Senator, Texas.
The Buzz:
– An ‘originalist’ that would supposedly be likely to reverse previous legislation from the bench (*Roe v. Wade being largely speculated on).
On Abortion:
– Voted YES on criminal penalty for harming unborn fetus during other crime. (Mar 2004)
– Voted YES on banning partial birth abortions except for maternal life. (Mar 2003)
– Rated 0% by NARAL, indicating a pro-life voting record. (Dec 2003)
On Business:
– 100% rating by the US COC which leads one to believe he’s very pro big-business.
On Education:
– Rated 27% by the National Education Association for support of many Bush Administration or similar policies.
On Environment:
– Drill in Alaska; oppose global warming treaties. (Jun 2002)
– Voted YES on Bush Administration Energy Policy. (Jul 2003)
– Voted NO on targeting 100,000 hydrogen-powered vehicles by 2010. (Jun 2003)
– Voted NO on removing consideration of drilling ANWR from budget bill. (Mar 2003)
On Crime:
– Involved in the controversial death penalty case of Calvin Burdine along with Jones, where the defendent’s attorney slept through portions of the trial.
On Family Law:
– Strengthen families by supporting marriage. (Jun 2002)
– Rated 100% by the Christian Coalition: a pro-family voting record. (Dec 2003)
On Health Care:
– Freedom from health care tyranny & more individual choice. (Jun 2002)
– Supports prescription drug coverage for seniors. (Jun 2002)
– Voted NO on $40 billion per year for limited Medicare prescription drug benefit. (Jun 2003)
– Rated 0% by APHA, indicating a anti-public health voting record. (Dec 2003)
John Roberts
Biography
Current Position:
– U.S. Court of Appeals – D.C.
The Buzz:
– Known conservative but considered a ‘stealth candidate’.
– Former supreme court clerk under Rehnquist
– Under the former Bush Administration, he played an active role in efforts to limit abortion. Roberts argued in a brief before the U.S. Supreme Court that “[w]e continue to believe that Roe was wrongly decided and should be overruled.”
– Age 50
From Law.Com:
Yet those who know Roberts say he, unlike Souter, is a reliable conservative who can be counted on to undermine if not immediately overturn liberal landmarks like abortion rights and affirmative action. Indicators of his true stripes cited by friends include: clerking for Rehnquist, membership in the Federalist Society, laboring in the Ronald Reagan White House counsel’s office and at the Justice Department into the Bush years, working with Kenneth Starr among others, and even his lunchtime conversations at Hogan & Hartson. “He is as conservative as you can get,” one friend puts it. In short, Roberts may combine the stealth appeal of Souter with the unwavering ideology of Scalia and Thomas.
J. Michael Luttig
Current Position:
– 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
– Former clerk for Antonin Scalia
The Buzz:
– Texas native that worked in the Justice Department during the presidency of Bush, Sr.
– Caused a stir among legal ethics experts due to running the Clarence Thomas’s confirmation hearings after being confirmed himself to the 4th circuit court of appeals.
– Has some extremely conservative written opinions that could cause problems.
– Considered pro-life, and has been active in pushing the partial-birth abortion bans, and openly making it clear that he opposes abortion.
– Age 51
J Harvey Wilkinson III
Current Position:
– 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Chief Judge
The Buzz:
– Solid conservative record but also considered to be among those characterized as a ‘compassionate conservative’.
– Wrote the majority opinion upholding the right of the United States government to detain Yaser Esam Hamdi (US citizen detained during the invasion of Afghanistan) indefinitely without access to counsel or court. This was later overturned by the US Supreme Court.
– Wrote the majority opinion on Clinton’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.
– Age 61
Michael McConnell
Current Position:
– 10th Circuit Court of Appeals
– Formerly professor at the University of Chicago and the University of Utah
The Buzz:
– Long and noteably conservative written record from his time in Academia.
– Religious right would support him due to what has been called “sharp opposition” to abortion rights.
– Very controversial positions and some approval from bi-partisan academics
– Speculated that the White House may consider him too independent and uncontrollable.
– Age 50
Emilio Miller Garza
Current Position:
– 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
The Buzz:
– Was considered by Bush, Sr. as a potential candidate during his presidency.
– Very vocal of opponent Roe v. Wade writing two very opinions in which he explicitly suggested it should be overturned.
– Considered to be a great political choice due to being hispanic and extremely conservative.
– Age 58
Alberto Gonzalez
Current Position:
– Current Attorney General
– Long time Bush adviser
– Formerly on a Supreme Court Justice in Texas.
The Buzz:
– Considered the more moderate of the two hispanic considerations.
– Criticized for his memo’s regarding the Geneva Convention and the Gitmo detainees, advocating the US right to hold without counsel or charge, calling the provisions offered to the detainees “quaint”.
– Wrote a memorandum that argued laws prohibiting torture do “not apply to the president’s detention and interrogation of enemy combatants”.
– His writings are considered possibly contributing to the climate that allowed the Abu Ghraib abuses occur.
– Age 50
Samuel Alito, Jr.
Current Position:
– 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia
The Buzz:
– Somewhat of an unknown, but nicknamed “Scalito” due to supposedly having views very similar to Scalia
– Upheld a Pennsylvania pro-life law that the Supreme Court overturned in Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
– Wrote an opinion in that case arguing for a standard that would permit virtually any restriction on abortion.
– Age 55
Larry Thompson
Current Position:
– He is general counsel at PepsiCo.
– Former deputy attorney general until he quit in 2003.
The Buzz:
– Bush administration’s highest-ranking black law enforcement official.
– Voted to uphold interstate abortion / parental notification laws.
– Considered somewhat moderate due to a few environmental issues.
Edith Jones
Current Position:
– 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
– Former general counsel for the Texas Republican Party.
The Buzz:
– Extremely outspoken opponent of Roe v. Wade, having referred to it as an “exercise of raw judicial power,” that needs to be re-examined.
– In cahoots with Norma McCorvey, the original plaintiff in Roe v. Wade, and then in 1995 announced she had become a born again Christian and pro-life activist.
– Criticized and protested for her decisions in the death penalty case of Calvin Burdine, in which it has been established that Burdine’s attorney slept through portions of his 1983 court case. Jones defended her decision with, “We cannot determine whether Cannon [Burdine’s attorney, now deceased] slept during a ‘critical stage’ of Burdine’s trial.”
– Age 56
Oh no, you've figured me out!