Son of Detroit
04-13-2010, 08:31 PM
http://www.detnews.com/article/20100413/POLITICS03/4130423/Granholm-reportedly-on-Supreme-Court-short-list
Washington -- Gov. Jennifer Granholm's name resurfaced today as being on the much-speculated-about short list of possible successors to retiring Supreme Justice John Paul Stevens.
"First Read," NBC's weekday morning update e-mail, reported "people outside the government but familiar with White House thinking say the serious contenders" are Granholm and four others.
The Associated Press reported today, "The president is seriously reviewing about 10 people," including the term-limited Granholm who is in her final year as Michigan's Democratic governor.
Those news items followed a piece on The New Times' Web site late Monday citing an unnamed "White House official" confirming Granholm is on Obama's list.
Russell Wheeler, a court expert at the Brookings Institution, says Granholm's chances depend on whether Obama is looking for a conventional pick, a respected judge who can quickly go through the confirmation process, or wants to shake up the court with a politician who brings empathy from having dealt with average people's problems.
"It's a question of what the White House is balancing," Wheeler said. "Granholm's pluses include that she would bring empathy as the governor of a state that has had such high unemployment. She's also young and she's a woman."
Granholm was vetted for Obama's first opening, the retirement of David Souter, who was replaced by Sonia Sotomayor.
But Richard Friedman, a University of Michigan law professor and expert on the Supreme Court, has noted that being passed over doesn't necessarily mean you won't eventually find yourself on the court: President Bill Clinton passed over Stephen Breyer for his first Supreme Court opening, but then nominated him when he had a second opportunity.
Granholm, 51, graduated from Harvard Law School, clerked for a federal judge, and served as a federal prosecutor and Michigan's attorney general before being elected governor twice.
The president appears to like her: When she dined at the White House in February with fellow governors, Obama went out of his way to make note of her during his remarks and she was seated at a table with first lady Michelle Obama, a sign of honor. And her husband, Daniel Mulhern, was invited recently to participate in a summit at the White House on workplace flexibility.
On Michigan Public Radio last month, Granholm said of the possibility she'd end up on the court, "I just don't think it will happen."
Some senators have said they'd like to see a governor on the Supreme Court to add diversity to the nation's top court. But the last time a governor was picked was in 1953, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower tapped California governor Earl Warren.
From The Detroit News: http://www.detnews.com/article/20100413/POLITICS03/4130423/Granholm-reportedly-on-Supreme-Court-short-list#ixzz0l2PCx8zQ
http://skepticalteacher.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/facepalm1.jpg
Granholm is absolutely terrible. Why she would even be considered for the SCOTUS is beyond me.
Washington -- Gov. Jennifer Granholm's name resurfaced today as being on the much-speculated-about short list of possible successors to retiring Supreme Justice John Paul Stevens.
"First Read," NBC's weekday morning update e-mail, reported "people outside the government but familiar with White House thinking say the serious contenders" are Granholm and four others.
The Associated Press reported today, "The president is seriously reviewing about 10 people," including the term-limited Granholm who is in her final year as Michigan's Democratic governor.
Those news items followed a piece on The New Times' Web site late Monday citing an unnamed "White House official" confirming Granholm is on Obama's list.
Russell Wheeler, a court expert at the Brookings Institution, says Granholm's chances depend on whether Obama is looking for a conventional pick, a respected judge who can quickly go through the confirmation process, or wants to shake up the court with a politician who brings empathy from having dealt with average people's problems.
"It's a question of what the White House is balancing," Wheeler said. "Granholm's pluses include that she would bring empathy as the governor of a state that has had such high unemployment. She's also young and she's a woman."
Granholm was vetted for Obama's first opening, the retirement of David Souter, who was replaced by Sonia Sotomayor.
But Richard Friedman, a University of Michigan law professor and expert on the Supreme Court, has noted that being passed over doesn't necessarily mean you won't eventually find yourself on the court: President Bill Clinton passed over Stephen Breyer for his first Supreme Court opening, but then nominated him when he had a second opportunity.
Granholm, 51, graduated from Harvard Law School, clerked for a federal judge, and served as a federal prosecutor and Michigan's attorney general before being elected governor twice.
The president appears to like her: When she dined at the White House in February with fellow governors, Obama went out of his way to make note of her during his remarks and she was seated at a table with first lady Michelle Obama, a sign of honor. And her husband, Daniel Mulhern, was invited recently to participate in a summit at the White House on workplace flexibility.
On Michigan Public Radio last month, Granholm said of the possibility she'd end up on the court, "I just don't think it will happen."
Some senators have said they'd like to see a governor on the Supreme Court to add diversity to the nation's top court. But the last time a governor was picked was in 1953, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower tapped California governor Earl Warren.
From The Detroit News: http://www.detnews.com/article/20100413/POLITICS03/4130423/Granholm-reportedly-on-Supreme-Court-short-list#ixzz0l2PCx8zQ
http://skepticalteacher.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/facepalm1.jpg
Granholm is absolutely terrible. Why she would even be considered for the SCOTUS is beyond me.