Redstate

Odds are much of this fight is going to take place in the public (or at least in public) and Fred Thompson has great star quality and intellectual depth.  Simply put, he's going to look great on those televised hearings.  Plus, with Cornyn being a sitting senator, he might be seen as too attached somehow.  No matter what, this confirmation is going to get nasty.  Personally, I'm thrilled that Thompson will be the one fighting for it.

A lot of this is going to be fought in the court of public opinion and Fred Thompson has a strong public presence.

That Cornyn is the nominee.

Ah, that Dubya.  He's so unpredictable.  So unpredictable.  I mean, in 2000, Dick Cheney was probably the LEAST likely choice for veep.  He was from a hard red state with 3 EVs, he didn't bring any "identity politics" to the table (e.g., wasn't Catholic, female, minority group member, etc), he had health problems, he was too old to groom as a successor, and he had a very wonkish personality, preferring policy over politics.  Plus, the guy was in charge of finding Bush's veep in the first place!  No one thought it was gonna be Cheney.

And then we found out it was Cheney.

We logicians who are sitting here touting Garza, of which I am guilty, are the same people that were saying Dubya HAD to pick Tom Ridge in 2000.  That Ridge made the most all-around sense.  That Bush/Ridge couldn't lose the electoral college.  But Bush --- he plays by his own rules.  

At the end of the day, it could be just about anybody.  POTUS is POTUS, after all.

Frankly I think it's as fruitless to speculate as to who the president is going to select as his first Supreme Court nominee as it is to speculate as to who will be the respective presidential candidates three years from now.

But people do seem to enjoy this sort of thing ;)

It's soooo much fun to speculate and throw in interesting little bits like Cornyn was given front row tickets to a Capitol 4th, which is the type of even he usually doesn't go to -- not to mention the fact that front row seating is reserved for only the most important folks to see and be seen.

"...he was too old to groom as a successor, and he had a very wonkish personality, preferring policy over politics." -DaveGOP

Well, both of those I were reasons I think Cheney did get picked. No urge for competition/disloyalty vis-a-vis the president and a background in an area Bush felt himself deficient.

As regards Cornyn, we'll know soon enough I guess. As of right now -- because they're planning for two SCOTUS seats -- it's a little too hard to divine which person is being groomed for which seat and who is being groomed for a public role in defending the eventual nominee. Too many factors, too many variables, and too many possibilities for misreading.

Re: "Why then does the President need retired senator and current NBC star Fred Thompson to help shepherd the nominee through the Judiciary Committee unless John Cornyn cannot shepard the nominee through the Judiciary Committee?"

Because Cornyn is relatively new, and because every little bit of muscel and star power helps with a nomination process like this.

Re: "Why/how did Senator Cornyn get front row tickets to A Capitol 4th, a type of event he usually does not go to (though he went this year)?"

Because he is a Senator, and he can get this kind of a perk if he wants it. Are you suggesting that someone is bribing him? With tickets to a fireworks display?  Come on!

You heard it here first!

Just wondering: Might Bush pull a "Cheney" with Thompson, and have him be the nominee? Thompson has some positives:

• Star recognition
  
• Eloquent
  
• Nearly impossible not to confirm
  
• Fairly staunch conservative
  
• Adds southern balance to the Court

Cornyn will be the contact guy on the Senate inside. Thompson will be the contact guy on the White House inside who, as a former Senator, can work with the Senate insiders and, as a media savvy person, spin for the President on the outside. Heck, as a former Senator he has access to the floor of the Senate chamber itself. It is a good team approach under the circumstances.

Neither Cornyn or Gonzales will be the nominee. Please. Neither is anywhere close to being the legal heavyweight needed. Gonzales blows up the Republican base and starts an intraparty civil war. Both would seal Bush's fate as a latter day LBJ clone who reached out to Texas buddies with lesser qualifications for the most important nomination of his Presidency. Neither could be the nominee no matter how badly Bush wanted them to be because they would destroy his legacy.

Don't Republicans remember what happens when you put politicians like Earl Warren and Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court? You get judicial decisions that emphasize social impact over legal reasoning and fidelity to the Consitution. Surely there are folks with a seat at the table who are going to remind President Bush of this stark fact either directly or in a more subtle manner.

Thompson's name has been thrown around in a few spots, namely as a candidate for president, VP or SCOTUS.  I suppose that if Gonzales is the nominee, Thompson might be on the short list for AG.  It might mean nothing, because having Big Fred work the cloakrooms makes a certain amount of sense by itself.  You may recall that at the beginning of the war, Thompson made the PSAs rallying support for the mission, so he has already come through for the president in the past.  Still, there's something about this that has the feel of a job audition.  Now if we only knew which job . . .

Showing everyone how eloquent he is when talking about the courts?

"born August 19, 1942" - that makes him 63.  Not an impossible nomination, just unlikely.  Except maybe for Chief.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Thompson