President Bush surprised both Democrats and Republicans Monday when he announced his nomination of a relatively unknown lawyer, Harriet Miers, to the Supreme Court.
Miers is currently the White House counsel but has no experience as a judge or arguing before the Supreme Court as a lawyer and little is known about her stances on key issues.
Bush selected Miers to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who has been the key vote on many controversial topics, especially those regarding women's health and reproductive rights.
Both of Wisconsin's U.S. senators, Russ Feingold and Herb Kohl, will be present at Miers' confirmation hearings.
Feingold said in a statement that Miers is a elatively unknown quantity"" and added, ""I will review her record and writings carefully and look forward to questioning her during the Judiciary Committee's hearings.""
Requests for more information have been common since Miers' nomination, as there is widespread uncertainty on how Miers would rule as a judge if her nomination were confirmed.
U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, said in a statement: ""few people know anything about Harriet Miers other than the fact that she is a close friend and trusted advisor to the President. These alone, however, are not sufficient qualifications for such an important appointment.""
The Republican Party of Wisconsin gave its full support of Miers and said in a statement that she is ""exceptionally well-qualified to serve on the nation's highest bench."" Miers' supporters said they are confident that she will interpret the Constitution strictly.
UW-Madison political science professor Charles Franklin said Miers does not have the typical r??sum?? of previous Supreme Court nominees.
""I don't know how many justices have been appointed from the Southern Methodist University Law School, but my guess is it's not that many,"" Franklin said.
Miers has served as a clerk for a district judge in Texas and was the first woman to head the State Bar of Texas. Franklin said that although these are great achievements, past nominees were ""usually clerks for the Supreme Court or at least an appellate court."" However, Franklin also noted that Miers started as a lawyer in the early 1970s when women had little opportunity for prominent positions.
Judy Baumgartner, an executive of the Republican party of Dane County, said she believes that ""as time unfolds there will be more talk and more will be revealed about her [Miers], but she is a little bit of a question mark at this point.\
