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Bush Had Considered Roberts As US Chief Justice (Mark H. Anderson, 9/05/05, DOW JONES NEWSWIRES)

U.S. President George W. Bush's decision Monday to quickly resubmit the nomination of Judge John Roberts Jr. to be Chief Justice of the United States was a plan the White House had already considered should the cancer-stricken Chief Justice William Rehnquist retire or die.

"This had been something in the back of the President's mind in case such a scenario came into being, if the Chief Justice had retired," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said. "The president when he met with (Roberts) knew he was a natural-born leader....The president viewed him as someone who had the leadership qualities needed to be able to lead the court." [...]

Roberts was already on track to be confirmed by the Senate, with some experts predicting he would get 75 or more votes despite opposition from numerous liberal interest groups.

Legal analysts also said Bush's decision to resubmit Roberts for the top high court job will likely result in a seamless transition of leadership at the Supreme Court. However, it's possible the Supreme Court will operate with only eight members while O'Connor's replacement is confirmed, should she decide to go ahead and retire.

"The speed with which the president acted this morning suggests that Roberts was at the top of the White House's list all along for the mistakenly anticipated resignation of the Chief Justice this summer," said Tom Goldstein of the Washington law firm Goldstein & Howe. "Recent developments - in which there has been some inevitable opposition but no serious threat to the confirmation has emerged - likely only solidified the president's views of the matter."

Mark Levy, a Washington attorney with Kilpatrick Stockton LLP, said Roberts " would have less trouble and arouse less controversy than others that could be named."

Rehnquist died three days before the scheduled start of the Senate Judiciary Committee's confirmation hearings for Roberts. Those hearings are certainly to be at least temporarily delayed. But the White House and Senate Republican leaders still want Roberts confirmed by the Senate before the Supreme Court convenes Oct. 3 for its next term.

"I still expect Judge Roberts to be confirmed before the Supreme Court starts its new term on Oct. 3," Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., said, adding "the president has made an excellent choice; Mr. Roberts is one of the most well qualified candidates to come before the Senate."