Over the past two months, the pages of this paper-and most others-have been graced by the judicious, boyish grin of John Roberts Jr. A mere 50-years young, Chief Justice Roberts will no longer be featured on the nation's front pages for he is now destined to the leafs of history. And, although aspiring attorneys will study the four days in 2005 when Roberts out-performed the nation's top acting troupe-the judiciary committee players??-those charming cheeks will soon fade into supreme oblivion, appearing only at regularly scheduled presidential inaugurations and awkward court photo opportunities.
No stranger to the obscurity of the Supreme Court, the ever-quotable Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., American jurist and 30-year associate justice, once proclaimed a page of history to be \worth a volume of logic.""
If anything logical is to be reinforced from the history made these last weeks in Washington, it is that, like in most affairs, politics always has the upper hand. Accordingly, those compensated to feed the body politic its daily dose of ""insider knowledge"" and beltway-exclusive-analysis are circulating the names of potential replacements for retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
A widely-recognized dark horse contender garnering little media attention-locally or nationally-is Wisconsin's native daughter, Diane Sykes.
A former Milwaukee County circuit judge, Sykes served as associate justice on the state supreme court from 1999 until 2004. She left the state capitol for the 7th District U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upon President Bush's nomination and the Senate's 70-27 consent.
The journalist-turned-lawyer-turned-judge meets the politically logical criteria for supplanting O'Connor-Sykes is a woman and a conservative. Nevertheless, where O'Connor represents a moderate ""swing"" vote, Sykes' approach is that of a textualist, in the same vein as Justice Antonin Scalia??--the far right's boy wonder.
In the event of a Sykes nomination, the left is certain to raise questions about her ideology. However, like Roberts, Sykes' federal casework is limited. While there are a few potential political blemishes on her record in Wisconsin-particularly a lone dissent against granting a new trial for a case in which a juror could not understand English-Sykes' short span as a federal judge leaves little possibility of a derailing paper trail.
Furthermore, Sykes' 2004 elevation to the federal bench was the product of a bipartisan nominating committee and the support of Senators Herb Kohl, D-Wis., and Russ Feingold, D-Wis., both members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. There should be little doubt that Sykes is a confirmable candidate.
Regardless, Sykes' conservative background without Roberts' Ivy League, Washington litigator credentials creates an opportunity for Democrats to flex their usually flaccid flexors and muscle up a contentious confirmation debate. However, a fight is exactly what the White House and GOP need to pull themselves out of a post-Katrina, Tom DeLay-induced quagmire. Standing strong, Republicans will take advantage of the Democrat's obstructionist tendencies and rally their conservative base by refusing to compromise on the future of the republic's high court.
While such a scenario is likely to occur regardless of the nominee, Diane Sykes stands as a qualified candidate and logical choice for the Supreme Court of the United States. Even if passed over for Justice O'Connor's seat, the 47-year-old rising star may someday find herself in Washington, D.C. Like Roberts, Sykes' relative youth and conservative thought make her an ideal candidate to contribute to the presidential legacy of George W. Bush.
