But there’s little doubt the GOP’s anti-anything-Obama-says-or-does posture will hold as his naming a nominee opens the next stage of what is the climactic Republican effort to damage the Obama presidency.
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The president then says he is aware of times when the law is ambiguous – times when justices must use his or her own perspective, ethics, and judgment – so he said he looks for a candidate that has “a keen understanding that justice is not about abstract legal theory, nor some footnote in a dusty casebook”. However, the president said the choice wouldn’t be made strictly on legal grounds.
Obama explained that his choice for the high court would first be someone highly qualified and, second, someone who will interpret and not make law.
“I’m looking for a mastery of the law, with an ability to hone in on the key issues before the Court, and provide clear answers to complex legal questions”. This is another trait Obama is looking for what that will help in shaping his decision as to who he’ll appoint as Antonin Scalia’s replacement. “That, I believe, is an essential element for arriving at just decisions and fair outcomes”, Obama wrote.
“A sterling record. A deep respect for the judiciary’s role”. He also wants the candidate to have a “deep respect for the judiciary’s role”. An understanding of the way the world really works.
The front-runner among them is Chandigarh-born Sri Srinivasan, 48, now the US Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit which many call as a stepping stone to the Supreme Court. He remarks that this will allow the Court to better serve the American people “at full strength”. And sitting Supreme Court justices stay the hell out of it. Or they should.
Last week a CBS News poll found that 82 percent of Republican voters oppose Obama’s exercising his constitutional duty and presenting a nominee to the Senate (77 percent of Democrats support it).
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“The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice”, McConnell intoned – thereby ignoring both the Constitution’s directive and the fact that the President and the Senate represent “the people”.
