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Sears for Souter could de-rail DeVine Law's un-Hatch Supreme Court strategy
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DeVine Gamecock Law (pictured) recently made clear his loathing of past GOP strategies concerning Supreme Court nominees made by Democratic Party presidents. Yes, the president is elected and election have consequences, but senators are elected too, and the Constitution is written.
Supreme Court nominees should not be affirmed merely because an elected President nominates a judge that hasn't been convicted of a crime. They must by judged on the likelihood that they will comply with their Oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution. Republicans should have voted against both Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer so that Orin Hatch (R-UT) couldn't have later boasted of the overwhelming GOP voted for them.
I anticipate that President Barack Obama will nominate an openly activist judge to replace retiring Justice Souter, but one of the potential nominees, Georgia Supreme Court Justice Leah Ward Sears (pictured) could throw a monkey-wrench into my preferred strategy.
Atlanta's Democrats Examiner spells out the case:
First, she’s a fair and even-handed judge who is known to err on the conservative side of the law—not in terms of politics but in terms of judicial restraint. Second, she’s very young and has the potential to enjoy a long tenure.
Third, and least important, she is a black woman, which says a lot about black women and how they have elevated their status over the past decades.
“She’s perfect,” says state Rep. Stephanie Stuckey Benfield (D-Atlanta). “With Souter leaving, there is no one on the Court who has experience as a state Supreme Court Justice. Sears would take that experience with her and provide a good perspective.”
For no good reason, a Republican man tried to take her seat on the Court during her last election. To say she cleaned the carpet with him is really an understatement. That election also proved that African-Americans can run statewide and not only win, but win big for one of the most important posts in Georgia.
I covered Justice Sears while the legal editor of The (Decatur, GA) Champion and recall no case that stands out as evidence that she is an activist judge. Moreover, she upheld the death penalty regularly and is an outspoken proponent of marriage.
I doubt she will be nominated. But she should. If she is, we will examine her record more closely, but for now, we can confidently say, we hope she is nominated.
Mike DeVine’s Charlotte Observer, Examiner.com and Minority Report columns
"One man with courage makes a majority." - Andrew Jackson
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