FLORIDA'S REACTION TO ROBERTS NOMINATION TO SCOTUS

The Pensacola News Journal notes this morning that Senator Mel Martinez acknowledged that he was one of 70 senators that President Bush consulted prior to nominating Judge John G. Roberts to the United States Supreme Court. (My question is: If Dubya consulted with 70 senators, what happened to the other 30...are they just THAT FAR out of favour?)

Martinez praised the record of Roberts, who is a former deputy White House legal counsel, former Deputy Solicitor General, and who currently sits on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. But the freshman senator says he will personally review the body of Roberts' work prior to deciding on his nomination.

The Democratic Senator, Bill Nelson, was non-committal about the choice in a prepared statement following the announcement last evening.

"The Supreme Court will be considering a number of issues with the potential to divide our nation...This is why I believe we need a justice who'll be a voice of reason and staunch defender of our constitutional rights. I look forward to reviewing Judge Roberts's record from this perspective."

In a statement published on his state Web site, Florida Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist referred to Roberts as "a lawyer's lawyer and a judge's judge", and said the president chose "a person who will interpret and apply the law and not attempt to legislate from the bench."

Roberts has some legal ties to Southwest Florida. The Naples News remembered that it was Bush's appointee who wrote last month's appellate court ruling (.pdf file) in favour of the Naples Airport Authority's decision to ban noisy Stage 2 jets from Naples Municipal Airport in a high profile case against the Federal Avaition Administration.

Of course, you have to take online polls with a grain of salt, but here's a look of what the polls at several Florida newspaper Web sites are showing now, as of 12:30 PM:

Marion Pulse (Ocala Star-Banner):
"Do you agree with President Bush's nominee for Supreme Court Justice?"
57 responses
Yes = 63.2%
No = 36.8%

InstaPoll (Daytona Beach News Journal):
"Do you agree with the president's nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court?"
281 responses
Yes, it was a good choice = 49.82%
No, too conservative = 28.11%
I haven't made up my mind yet = 16.73%
No, too liberal = 3.56%
No, too middle of the road = 1.78%

Polk Pulse (Lakeland Ledger):
"Do you agree with President Bush's decision to nominate John Roberts to the U.S. Supreme Court?"
296 responses
Yes = 66.9%
No = 33.1%