Let's Hope So, Mr. McCain (and your Gang of 14)

Straight from Drudge today:

Sen. McCain [R-AZ] Strong Words On Supreme Ct Nomination at Dallas Fundraiser: 'During the campaign, President Bush said he will appoint judges who will strictly interpret the constitution... thinking anything else is either amnesia or ignorance... elections have consequences... whomever he nominates deserves an up or down vote and no filibuster... and an up or down vote is what we will have'...

Transcript from Meet the Depressed on June 19: Tim Russert and Senator John McCain:

MR. RUSSERT: November 1999, Republican presidential primary debate. The question to John McCain: "Who would be your role model for your first justice named to the Supreme Court?"

John McCain: "I guess my particular role model would be Judge Scalia."

SEN. McCAIN: I think he would be frankly someone who would be approved by the Senate.

MR. RUSSERT: You do?

SEN. McCAIN: I don't believe he would be filibustered. No, I don't. There's many others that I also would strongly approve of as well.

Let's also hope that President Bush heeds Fred Barnes' advice:

"President Bush needs to keep two facts in mind as he looks to replace retiring Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O'Connor (and, should he step down, Chief Justice William Rehnquist). The first is that he can win confirmation of almost any conceivable nominee for the High Court, screams of protest by Democrats and hostile media coverage notwithstanding. The second is that he has a promise to keep. Since he began running for the White House six years ago, he has declared endlessly his intention to select judges who interpret the law rather than create it--in a word, conservatives."

-- Fred Barnes, for the Editors of the Weekly Standard