Scalito

Judge Samuel Alito appears to be the second coming of Harriet Miers... except for the fact that he is a man, he has 15 years of experience serving in the federal judiciary, he has a solid record as an originalist, he has no prior relationship with Bush and liberals already know they hate him. So, basically, he's not at all like Miers. At least, that seems to be the buzz around the blogosphere. I don't think I had ever heard Alito's name before this nomination so I can speak with absolutely no authority regarding his history or his qualifications. For more info, take a look at Pejman's overview or at SCOTUSblog's roundup of blogosphere reactions.

My initial reaction: Alito seems more obviously qualified than Miers but may be less confirmable because he actually has a paper-trail for liberals to attack. I only hope that the debate is a broad discussion of the role of the judiciary in our federal system of government instead of a narrow argument about Alito's views on Roe v. Wade. Given that the mainstream media has a fixation on abortion, I'm pessimistic that my wish will be granted.