Replacing Justice Stevens: Can the GOP thwart Obama?

The GOP is threatening to dig in when Obama nominates a replacement for the Supreme Court's liberal lion, John Paul Stevens

Justice Stevens plans to retire. But who will replace him?
(Image credit: Wikimedia)

Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, 89, says he will "surely retire" during Obama's presidency, and The New York Times says the White House is preparing for confirmation hearings this summer. Stevens is a stalwart member of the court's liberal wing, so unless Obama can replace him with a like-minded jurist, Stevens' retirement could shift the ideological balance of the court to the right. But after a bruising partisan fight over health reform, Republicans are threatening to filibuster anyone Obama nominates. Can the GOP block the judge Obama wants?

Republicans won't lose anything by blocking Obama's nominee: "I'll be shocked if there's no filibuster," says blogger Steve M. in No More Mister Nice Blog. The GOP got away with painting Obama's health plan as a leftist disaster. "The broad public will have no idea that it's an act of extremism if Republicans filibuster three, four, five Obama Supreme Court nominees in a row."

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