IT'S JOHN C. ROBERTS!

Well, the President has announced Sandra Day O'Connor's replacement on the Supreme Court and it's ...

John C. Roberts from the D.C. Court of Appeals!

Respected attorney and jurist, noted scholar, family man. Background checked by the FBI no less than FIVE times in the past - revealing no skeletons. Huge thumbs up (16 to 3) from the Senate Judiciary committee in 2003 when he was nominated for his current position on the D.C. Court of Appeals and later confirmed by a voice vote (unanimous!) in the Senate.

Should be smooth sailing for Roberts through the confirmation process right?

HOLD ON TRIGGER!!

Not more than 2 minutes after the President had announced his pick last night - little Chucky Schumer was on the podium in front of the press to announce that he wouldn't support Roberts. Okay, well that's not exactly what Chucky said. Essentially Chucky held out hope that Roberts might still be fortunate enough to garner his support if Satan managed to somehow log a cold day in hell between now and when the confirmation hearings begin. Since Global Warming is an eternal fact in hell - I highly doubt we'll see Chucky signing on to the Roberts bandwagon!

Dicky Durbin wasn't as wishy-washy as Chucky though - and immediately fired out a statement that there is no way Roberts is going to crash the Supreme party without a fight! I like Dicky, there is just something about a guy who went from getting beat up by the girls in the glee club in High School - to United States Senator that makes me like him!

Teddie Kennedy has a statement on his website - basically non-committal. This is not unexpected though since Monday was the anniversary of Mary Jo Kopechne's death in Teddie's car at Chappaquiddick. Teddie typically takes a few days hiatus from spewing character attacks and denouncing other people's morals on the anniversary of his unfortunate spill off Dike's Bridge. Maybe it's because he feels like folks will think him a hypocrite or maybe it's because he's just mourning the loss of his cherry Oldsmobile Delta 88 to the waters of Chappaquiddick Island. However, come tomorrow - I'm sure he'll be out there in the public light swinging away!

Howard (YeeeeAAAAH!) Dean came out immediately following the Roberts announcement with another conspiracy theory ... namely that, although folks might think that it's the duty of the President to announce a nomination to the Supreme Court every time a justice retires - that wasn't why Bush was naming one! No Sir, the reason Bush announced a nominee was to get Karl Rove out of the media spotlight!

Wonder what he would have thought about my suggestion to the President that he nominate KARL ROVE to the vacant Supreme Court post?

YEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!

Let the fun begin!

My prediction - this nomination splits the Democratic caucus almost completely in half. Chucky, Dicky, Teddie - and Howard Yee-Haw are left sitting on the far left wondering why everyone left the party! John C. Roberts gets confirmed - fairly easily but not without a lot of screaming from the left.

Take Charge!