Enquirer: Taft to name replacement for Justice Cook
Ohio Republicans are working on a list of candidates to replace Ohio Supreme Court Justice Deborah Cook, whose nomination to the federal appeals court will be taken up Jan. 14 by the Senate Judiciary Court.
Once Justice Cook is confirmed, Gov. Bob Taft will choose a replacement.
The governor has decided not to follow the recommendation of Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer, who asked him to set up a bipartisan panel of legal experts and non-lawyers to choose two to three people who'd be worthy supreme court justices. Mr. Taft could then pick from among the panel's finalists.
"It's a very long first step in taking some of the special interest politics out of the selection of supreme court justices," Justice Moyer said.
President George W. Bush nominated Justice Cook to the Cincinnati-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in May 2001. Her confirmation was held up by Senate Democrats.
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