No S.Ct. vacancies in sight

I have been saying repeatedly over the past year that there would be no supreme court vacancies during Bush's term.

It's a bold prediction, to be sure, but I just haven't been able to see legacy-obsessed justices installing a president, and then having that president select their successor.

Speculation have been that two justices face imminent retirements -- O'Connor and Rehnquist.

O'Conner has been recently energized by her newfound opposition to the death penalty, and looks to be in no hurry to retire. And she has been one of the justices most upset at how the Bush v. Gore decision played out. She's not going anywhere.

Rehnquist, on the other hand, has hired new staff and taken other actions indicating he'll be around for the next term (which also happens to be the final one before the 2004 elections).

I'll still hold to my prediction -- no Supreme Court vacancies until we have an elected president in the White House.

More the reason to bust our asses and open our wallets to help Democrats reclaim the White House.

Posted June 13, 2003 01:27 PM | Comments (45)