WASHINGTON — President Bush narrowed his focus to several judges Tuesday as he began considering a successor to Sandra Day O'Connor, the country's first female Supreme Court justice, who announced her retirement Friday.
The president spent "a good couple of hours" reviewing the biographies of the candidates and summaries of their judicial opinions during a 7 1/2 -hour flight to Copenhagen on his way to an international economic summit, said White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan.
But the White House offered few new clues about whom Bush might choose or when. In an interview before his trip, the president suggested that he might take up to several weeks to name O'Connor's successor.
In an interview published Tuesday in USA Today, Bush said he would start homing in on "a handful of candidates over the course of the next few weeks," adding that he intended to interview some of the candidates.
Within hours of O'Connor's retirement announcement, Congress and interest groups spanning the political spectrum began gearing up for what could be a protracted struggle over the first Supreme Court nomination in 11 years.
Although McClellan's comments Friday had fueled expectations that Bush could name O'Connor's successor within days after returning from Europe this Friday, the president's remarks seemed to indicate that he would take more time.
In the USA Today interview, Bush dodged a question about whether a delayed announcement -- perhaps until August -- would leave his political opponents less time to mount a full-scale attack.
Republicans have come to rue some past battles over Supreme Court nominees, when long delays between the nominations and the Senate confirmation hearings allowed prolonged political wrangling.
For example, President Reagan selected Judge Robert H. Bork on July 1, 1987, but the hearings did not begin until early September. In the intervening two months, a coalition of liberal and civil rights groups mounted a broad attack that damaged Bork's reputation and sank his nomination.
The same was true in 1991 when the first President Bush chose Judge Clarence Thomas for the Supreme Court. Throughout July and August, Thomas' opponents dug up information that undercut his nomination, including allegations of sexual harassment. He ultimately was confirmed by a narrow margin.
