Weighing Judicial and Legislative Experience

Today, the AP’s Jesse J. Holland writes the following about the President’s possible selection process for the Supreme Court.

Harriet Miers’ failed Supreme Court nomination is driving President Bush back to a tried-and-true formula for filling a high court vacancy: tapping a federal or state judge with a solid conservative paper trail.

Last month, I penned an editorial on the judicial selection process for The Undecided, a political journal published by students at Pomona College. The basic premise: President Bush should not limit his choice to a sitting judge; rather, he should nominate someone with a background that at least includes experience in a legislative or executive branch. Or in other words,

The Supreme Court need not consist solely of theoreticians and brilliant legal minds. President Bush and future presidents would be well served to nominate men and women who both have a command of Constitutional issues and the real-world experience necessary to be the best Supreme Court Justice – even if it enables the naysayers to continue to complain about perceived “judicial activism.�

The entire article is available here.