the miers pick

Harriet Miers is an interesting choice. She's a lawyer, but has never served as a judge -- like Earl Warren and 39 other Supreme Court justices. She's a close friend of Bush, but not the close friend -- Alberto Gonzales -- that many conservatives feared. But like Gonzales, she is already getting squawks from the right that she's not a "known conservative." She's a she, but not one of the women who had been named as possible justices after O'Connor announced her resignation. Does this choice reflect a greater desire to avoid a post-Katrina fight over a real hardcore right-winger female judge like Brown or Owens? She's 60 years old, not ancient, but not young like Roberts and some of the other candidates for the slot.

And basically, with no judicial experience, she's a blank slate. Barring anything scandalous (some rightwingnuts are beginning the "she's a lesbian" thing about the unmarried Miers), she'll be confirmed, and it'll be interesting to see where she goes.