4th Circuit Court Moving to the Middle

Some of the US circuit courts have distinct ideological flavors; the 9th has always been the ultra-liberal court, and until recently the 4th has been a more conservative one (and one that often hears cases involved with detainees and the War on Terror). Unfortunately, as the Washington Post chronicles, that may soon change. Of the fifteen seats, Republicans and Democrats both hold five - and the remaining five are vacant. It should go without saying that this isn't a reassuring development, that while Bush has been slow to provide nominations for those vacancies, it's unlikely that a Democratic president will be so lax. It should also go without saying that five nominees chosen by the same party have the potential to alter the ideological temperament of a court for years if not decades to come. This may be the endgame quietly sought by Senate Democrats as they have stonewalled so many Bush appointees over the last few years, and if so it appears to be working.

Many have called Bush's appointees to the Supreme Court his greatest legacy, but he will tarnish that legacy if he allows lower courts to drift away from conservative principles.
(h/t Bench Memos)