Litigation

Supreme Court Vacancy: A List of 10 Candidates?

By Peter Hardin

Some names that are less familiar inside Washington have surfaced on the list of possible candidates for President Obama’s selection to succeed Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens.

As many as 10 candidates are under serious consideration, according to a Washington Post article. Two recent additions to the media speculation are former Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears of Georgia, the first African-American woman to serve as chief justice in a U.S. court, according to the New York Times; and Judge Sidney Thomas of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, according to the Associated Press.

Others placed on the list by media reports include Solicitor General Elena Kagan; federal appeals court Judges Merrick Garland and Diane Wood; Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm; and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.

Obama plans to meet with Republican and Democratic senators at the White House April 21 to discuss the vacancy.

Here’s a tip from one experienced observer of Supreme Court nomination politics, Jan Crawford of CBS News: “My guidance continues to be that the focus should remain on our top three.” They are Kagan and Judges Garland and Wood.

“It’s important to keep in mind that some of the people are on the list as a courtesy or as a nod to one group or another and are not likely to be selected,” Crawford wrote in a CBS News post about the candidates’ list.

Regarding the next nominee, “I hope we don’t end up at odds,” retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor said at the Dole Institute of Politics on The University of Kansas campus, the Topeka Capital-Journal reported. “I hope it doesn’t result in an unbearable controversy.”

You can read more about the prospective candidates, the political landscape, and Justice Stevens’ legacy in a special Gavel Grab media report update today.

Full post as published by The Gavel on April 13, 2010 (boomark / email).