"Hola, Senadores! Me Llamo Danny Boggs."

Over at Confirm Them, Erick adds a new name to the Supreme Court speculation: Judge Danny J. Boggs, of the Sixth Circuit. David Bernstein of the Volokh Conspiracy is enthusiastic:

[I]t would be hard to come up with a nominee who has a similar desireable combination of Boggs's very considerable intellectual skill, vast experience, appropriate distance from D.C. political intrigue and general inside-the-beltway careerism (unlike a certain recent nominee), and potential political advantage (born in Cuba, and half-Cuban). Nominate him!

Very interesting... It's true that Judge Boggs, who was born in 1944, is a decade older than Chief Justice John Roberts (who was just sworn in this afternoon, by the way; fashion props to Jane Sullivan Roberts for her elegant red dress). But Judge Boggs's Cuban heritage, which A3G didn't know about until now -- his FJC bio lists his ethnicity as "White" -- is obviously a HUGE plus.

Judge Boggs is also very well-connected politically, having worked on several political campaigns and held various governmental posts, both in Kentucky and in Washington. UTR readers describe him as "exceedingly smart" and "a solid conservative," as well as "a card-carrying member of the Federalist Society" (whose national convention he attended last year, accompanied by his wife, Judy Boggs).

So Judge Boggs is definitely one to watch in the race to One First Street. If he's ultimately nominated to serve as an Associate Justice, one of the Senate Judiciary Committee members should ask him this question: "If confirmed to the Supreme Court, Judge Boggs, will you still subject all clerkship applicants to your notoriously difficult trivia quiz?"

Comments

[Article III Groupie]

The explanation for Scalia's absence can be found in this post:
http://underneaththeirrobes.blogs.com/main/2005/10/a_judicial_sigh.html

This could explain Scalia's absence: http://www.theonion.com/content/node/40767

[Nino Stalker]

So where was Scalia today?