Gerry’s list of potential GOP Supreme Court nominees would be a good short list had there been another vacancy during Bush’s second term, but I suspect a President McCain’s short list would be quite different. I say this for a few reasons. First, some of the names on Gerry’s list are unlikely to be considered due to their age (e.g. Judge Edith Jones). Second, I think McCain would be likely to push his judicial vetters to expand their consideration to include some “untraditional” choices, including some state justices and attorneys general, and perhaps even sitting Senators. Third, a President McCain will have the opportunity to instantly “credential” some people through his use of lower court and Justice Department nominations.
While I have no connection to the McCain campaign or other source of inside informaiton, I am fairly confident that a President McCain’s Supreme Court shortlist would include quite a few names that were not on