President Bush may have made a strategic decision regarding the passing of Chief Justice Rehnquist by selecting Roberts over Scalia or Thomas. Truth be told Scalia and Thomas would have been problematic selections. With their combined wealth of opinions on the bench there would have been a huge battle in the Senate. And right now, with the Chief Justice position open, along with the political battles going on concerning Katrina and Iraq, Roberts was a reasonable opportunity to have the Chief Justice postion filled as soon as possible.

My guess is Bush discussed the factors and his thinking with Scalia and Thomas before announcing his decision. While I feel for Scalia and Thomas, life is can be unfair when events takes precedence over dedication. It happens.

Now I think we need to see the candidate for O’Conner’s seat. As I was writing this someone on Fox News mentioned Edith Clement, who was the point of a lot of speculation prior to the Roberts announcement, who is from Louisiana. Her nomination would make a lot of sense right now.

More on Edith Clement here at Redstate.