Hey Tim. Nice to see you weighing in on this tough time. Times are different than they were in 1956. One critical change is that while Brennan's appointment was political, it was about electoral politics. Nowadays, these nominations are far more about the direction of the Court than the direction of the country's politics. To be sure, i don't think Eisenhower thought he was picking a liberal, but beyond that he didn't seem primarily focused on what kind of justice Brennan would be. As you explain, he was more focused on what kind of electoral gain he could get from picking a Catholic, northeast Democrat. Today, it is, instead, all about counting the number of cases in which the outcomer may change because of this nominee or that one. Hard to go back to 1956.
Hey Tim. Nice to see you weighing in on this tough time. Times are different than they were in 1956. One critical change is that while Brennan's appointment was political, it was about electoral politics. Nowadays, these nominations are far more about the direction of the Court than the direction of the country's politics. To be sure, i don't think Eisenhower thought he was picking a liberal, but beyond that he didn't seem primarily focused on what kind of justice Brennan would be. As you explain, he was more focused on what kind of electoral gain he could get from picking a Catholic, northeast Democrat. Today, it is, instead, all about counting the number of cases in which the outcomer may change because of this nominee or that one. Hard to go back to 1956.