New Chief Justice

I haven’t posted in a while, getting back into school has been very hectic, but I’m hoping to post more over the next couple of months.

I was glad that the Senate voted to approve John Roberts to assume the position of Chief Justice. Chief Justice Rehnquist was an incredible jurist, and from everything that I have seen, a good-natured man who was respected by all those around him, including his successor. He has left big shoes to fill, and it is appropriate that they are being filled by someone who had the opportunity to work with him.

Roberts certainly does not have an easy task, the court is very divided (we will see who the President chooses to replace O’Connor) and he has not had a lot of time to prepare for his new role. Roberts will be under a lot of scrutiny, and I hope he is up to the task. Though he was criticized by several high-ranking Democrats, his record shows that he is an extremely good lawyer, with amazing analytical and writing skills. Several recent decisions (see Kelo, among others) have relied on shaky legal grounds, and I hope that the addition of someone like Roberts will force more true reasoning into decisions, rather than just personal ideology.

Regardless of what happens in the future, Roberts has impressed a lot of people. President Bush still has to choose another nominee, and he is going to have a hard time finding someone who looks as good on paper as John Roberts.