he really did take to heart his experience with the very liberal william brennan, but in the wake of that, you just don't see anything like justice brennan's very liberal ideology in basically anything he's done. when you have a judge who almost never votes to overturn criminal convictions as chief judge garland's history has been, when he regularly disagrees with more liberal colleagues in those cases, you know you're not talking about someone who is going to be an intellectual leader of the supreme court's left. you're talking about somebody who is going to be the rock solid center if he can get onto the court. >> let's bring in two more of our friends, kelly o'donnell and andrea mitchell. kelly, you have watched these things for a lot of years in washington. i just was asking the same question, it's hard for people to watch this and then be hold that this in part could be designed to go down in flames, a kind of sacrificial nomination. but the republicans don't seem to be moving on their threat not to confirm. >> brian, i think in many ways, they will be impervious to public pressu

is 63 years old and a graduate of harvard law school, and he clerked for supreme court justice william brennan. mitch mcconnell has said the next president should get to fill the zipper in court vacancy, and the senate will not consider president obama's nominee. after the president announcement, he responded on twitter saying potus made his supreme court nominee without the intent of seeing and confirms it but to politicize it for purposes of the election. we will have more from senator mcconnell in a while. now, here is the president announcement from earlier today at the white house. it is about a half-hour. president obama: good morning, everybody please have a seat. of the many powers and possibilities that the constitution vests in the presidency, few are more consequential than appointing a supreme court justice. particularly one to secede -- succeed justice antonin scalia, one of the most important jurists of our time. the men and women to sit on the court or the final arbiters of american law. they safeguard our rights. they ensure that our system is one of laws and not men. they are

a legendary judge on the second circuit, judge henry friendly, and for supreme court justice william brennan. following his clerkships, merrick joined a highly regarded law firm, one that practiced focus on litigation and pro bono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four years he earned a , partnership. the dream of most lawyers. but in 1989, just months after that achievement, merrick made a highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted a low-level job as a federal prosecutor in president george h.w. bush's administration, took a 50% pay cut traded in his office for a , windowless closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. this is a time when crime here in washington had reached epidemic proportions. he wanted to help. and he quickly made a name for himself going after corrupt politicians and violent , criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department where he , oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990's. including overseeing every

he became chief judge, february of 2013, clerked for william brennan, and deputy attorney general from 1994 to 1997, he supervised cases among others, the timothy mcveigh case, the ted kaczynski case, and this is a guy imminently qualified. harvard college, harvard law school in 1977, and as you say, someone whose name has been heard over and over again as far as potential nominees to the supreme court. eminently qualified. >> he would be viewed as a safe choice. not some of the other judges and other lawyers that the president was considering, because again, garland is a well known figure. he's been on the court for a very long time. and that court of appeals and the district of columbia has sent a number of other justices to the supreme court, including chief justice roberts, clarence thomas, scalia, and others over the years. there's going to be a lot of concern about this choice by many people who are obama supporters. who wanted to see more diversity on the court. this selection is a white male. sri srinivasan would have been the first south asian selection on the court. there are

legendary judge on the second circuit and judge henry friendly and for supreme court justice william brennan. following his clerk ships merrick joined a highly regarded law firm with a practice focused on litigation@ and pro bono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four yea he earned a partnership, a dream of most lawyers, but in 1989, just months after that achievement career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted a low-level job as a federal prosecutor in president george h.w. bush's administration, and took a 50% pay cut and traded in his elegan partner's office for a windowless closet t tt smelled of stealale cigarette smoke. this was a time when crime in washington had reached epidemic proportions and he wanteto help and he quickly made a name for himself g gng after corrupt politicians and violent riminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990s including overseeing every aspect of the federal

considered a moderate and garland was confirmed in 19909 and briefly clerked for supreme court justice william brennan. >> to a view of capitol hill at exactly 11:00. republicans who control the senate say that they have absolutely no intention of allowing any obama nominee to go through. they're saying they will not for his part, though, the president says it is his constitutional duty to putpforth a nominee. thanks for being with us. i'm eric harryman. >> d any minute the president is expected to make his way into the rose garden and we are monitoring the feed and as soon as we see him walk o of the doors we'll have it live for you here and also on the nbc 6 news and weather app. we will move into decision 2016 today. it's going to be a quiet day on the campaign trail. thank goodness, it probably should be. five primaryies were there and very busy on into the morning as the numbers continue to follow in. the candidates are taking the day off today and much needed except for one and that is john kasich. the republican field has narrowed once again as donald trump claims victory forcing a hometown sen

and 63-year-old judge garland who clearinged for justice william brennan and has strong support on both sides of the aisle. in this politically charged environment, they doubt the gop will relent. >> i think they believe there's a the love political benefits from their base to not holding hearings. i think that many of these nominees under normal circumstances would be acceptable to them. i don't think anyone gets through. no way no how. >> high stakes in a high stakes environment. press secretary said the president is taking seriously recommendations from senators and other experts on both sides of the political aisle which was a bit of news day. you can add to the growing news, appellate judge alberto jordan telling the white house thanks but no thanks. >> kevin corke live on the north launl. thank you. >>> what would a contested republican convention mean this summer in cleveland? you're an at&t small business expert? sure am. my staff could use your help staying in touch with customers. at&t can help you stay connected. am i seeing double? no ma'am. our at&t 'buy one get one free' m

moderates earl warren and william brennan. even president nixon, who showed no reluctance to take full advantage of presidential prerogative, balanced his choices of conservatives, or --ger and william rehnquist warren burger and william rehnquist with harry blackmun and lewis powell. this is not been the model the president reagan and bush have followed. in deed, even lacking the broad support for the vision which presidents washington and adams, lincoln and grant, and roosevelt and truman had, president reagan and bush have tried to recast the court in their ideological image. as these presidents did. notit another way, is it the first time that a tandem of presidents have re-sought to -- sought to remake the supreme court, or the first time a government has had to feel a number of seats in that the divided body? it is the first time both have been attempted simultaneously. elsehat more than anything has been at the root of the current controversy, surrounding the selection of supreme court justices. stress,o cope with this c

garland was law clerk to justice william brennan, nominated in annal election year. brean wabrennan was confirmed ba democratically led legislature. >> it was so uncontentious, brennan was a recess appointment, democrat appointed by eisenhower a republican and took his seat on the escort immediately without senate confirmation. and then was renominated in 1957, and confirmed easily, by the senate. so the conten shoul should concn a different atmosphere. and we haven't had a recess appointment in years. >> this is going to be an interesting one, isn't it? we'll all be watching. steve vermile, thank you very much. >> thank you. >> coming up why peace talks on syria have stalled and sentenced to 15 years in the north korean prison. what the obama administration is doing to help an american student. v >> ifu.n. sponsored talks on the syrian conflict resumed but planning to declare an autonomous zone. james bays has the story. >> the group that's not been invited forbesed themselves on to the agenda. u.n. envoy staffan de mistura decided to seclude the pyd for now, clair

president eisenhower's judicial appointees, judge henry friendly and then for supreme court justice william brennan. following his clerkships, he joined a highly regarded law firm with a practice focused on litigation and pro bono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four years, he earned a partnership, the dream of most lawyers. but in 1989, just months after that achievement, merrick made a highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted a low-level job as a federal prosecutor in president george h w bush's administration and took a 50% pay cut. traded in the elegant office for a windowless closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. this was a time when crime here in washington had reached epidemic proportions, and he wants to help, and he quickly made a name for himself going after corrupt politicians and violent criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990's, including overseeing ever

garland is a former law clerk for the late justice william brennan.majority leader mitch mcconnell who vows not to hold a hearing regardless of the nominee. republicans say that the next president should fill that seat. ate president said in a >>> this is a cbs news special report. president obama is about to announce his newest nominee for the supreme court. the president will speak momentarily in the white house rose garden. sources tell cbs news the president's choice is federal judge merrick garland. he would replace justice antonin scalia who died last month. >> garland is the chief judge on the u.s. court of appeals for the district of columbia, the second highest court in the land. it produced three of the current supreme court justices. he was a justice department official during the clinton administration before appointed to the appeals court 19 years ago. >> this nomination is sure to be one of the most controversial in recent years and a good chance it will never even come to a vote. margaret brennan is at the white house now. >> the presid

then supreme court justice william brennan. following his clerkships, he joined a highly regarded law firm, where the practice focused on litigation and pro bono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four years he earned a partnership, the dream of most lawyers. in 1989, just months after that achievement, merrick made a highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted the low-level job as a federal prosecutor in president george h.w. bush's administration. he took a 50% pay cut. traded in his elegant office for a windowless closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. it was a time when crime in washington had reached epidemic proportions and he wanted to help. he quickly made a name for politicians and violent criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department. where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990s. including overseeing every aspect of the federal response to th

also, garland served for william brennan, and now the nomination fight begins. >> it is tempting to make this process simply an extension of our divided politics. the squabbling that's going on in the news every day. but to go down that path would be wrong. it would be a betrayal of our best traditions. >> for a judge to be worthy of such trust, he or she must be faithful to the constitution and to the statutes passed by the congress. he or she must put aside his personal views or preferences and follow the law, not make it. constitutional right to nominate a supreme court justice, and it's the senate's constitutional right to act as a check on a president, and withhold its consent. >> merrick garland is best known for coordinating the response in the prosecution of timothy mcveigh in the oklahoma city bombing. it's going to be interesting to see had you republicans respond to this choice. they are vowing to fight they will not even take up this nomination of garland, during this, an election year. stay tuned. >>> more breaking news. sources are telling eyewitness news that there have be

first for a judge onc the 2nd circuit, henry friendly, and then justice william brennan.icans. within four years he earned afá partnership, 4ie dream of most lawyers. but in 1989, just months after that achievement, merrick made r he walked awayf6 z a service. merrick accepted a low level judge as a federalt( prosecutorn president george h.w. bush's 50%. traded in his elegant partner's office for axd windowless close aáhat smelled of stale cigarett smoke. this was a time when crime here in washington hade1 reached epidemic proportions and he wanted to help and he quickly made a name for himself%,'ñ goi after corrupt politicians and violent criminals. prosecutor led him to ther justice department where he oversaw some of the most significant pros including overseeing every aspect of the federal response to the oklahoma city bombing.é@ in the aftermath of that act of terror,u when 168ko people, maf them small children, were murdered, merrick had one evening to say good-bye to his own youngc daughters before he board add plane to oklahoma city and remain there for weeks. h

as a young lawyer for two of the most pre-eminent judges ever, one on the second circuit, and william brennan on the supreme court. it is imminently qualified. and this also does -- i think it's masterful because it paints the g.o.p. senators in a corner. they now have to say that this person is not qualified for the court or that doesn't even merit a hearing. that is going to be a hard case to make, especially since they are now running the risk that you are either going to have hillary clinton appointing someone who is probably going to be the left, or donald trump appointing someone, and the g.o.p. establishment doesn't want either. >> i just want to turn to a tweet sent out by orrin hatch. he is still on the judiciary committee. you probably also new that senator hatch actually supported merrick garland previously when he was up for a supreme court vacancy, and here is what he wrote this morning on twitter: does that give you an indication that he is going to try to block this along with other republican colleagues on the senate judiciary committee. >> absolutely. but i think the politics

the 63-year-old clerked for supreme court justice william brennan and is a harvard grad as well. >> thankou, mr. president. this is the greatest honor of my life. other than lynn agreeing to marry me 28 years ago. >> with the court now evenly divided with four liberal and four conservative justices, senate republicans are vowing to block this nomination. >> and it is the senate's constitutional right to act as a check on a president and withhold his consent. action on a supreme court nomination must be put off until after the election campaign is over. >> so we have our team of correspondents covering all of the angles of this breaking story. and the developments that have happened since the announcement late this morning. we want to start with justice correspondent pete williams. so pete, what in judge garland's background sets him apart from the ourt rumored named that were on president obama's short list? >> the idea that the white house felt he would be the person that it would be hardest for the republicans to oppose. he's well liked personally by members. he's been confirmed before.

in 2012 he said it's not unusual, stressing that notable justices, thurgood marshall and william brennanrely did. >>> super tuesday coverage, count it on throughout the day. >>> governor christie is backing donald trump as you know, not because of his policies. he has a more pragmatic reason. we'll hear from the governor coming up at 6:30. >>> a judge's ruling in new york could help apple in a case 3,000 miles away. when you think what does it look like? is it becoming a better professor by being a more adventurous student? is it one day giving your daughter the opportunity she deserves? is it finally witnessing all the artistic wonders of the natural world? whatever your definition of success is, helping you pursue it, is ours. t-i-a-a. >>> it's 6:25. in south jersey, parents and students are working to save their elementary school. evesham township school district officials held a meeting last night to unveil plans to consolidate the district's seven elementary schools to six. florence evans elementary school would close. opponents say the school is needed but district leaders say the

he clerked for the late justice william brennan, and also served at the justice department, where he prosecuted timothy mcveigh in the oklahoma city bombing. >> a ryder truck was seen there -- >> now the ballots begins to whether a divided congress will confirm garland to fill the open seat on the supreme court. >> mr. president, it's a great privilege to be nominated by a fellow chicagoan. i an grateful beyond words for the honor you have bestowed upon me. >>> pamela brown is joining us live, also our senior legal analyst jeffrey toobin. quickly how would you characterize the president's choice of chief judge merrick garland? >> this is an extremely qualified nominee by any standards, someone who has impeccable legal background 18 years on what is widely regarded as the second-most important court in the country unnormal circumstances, he would certainly get a vote and almost certainly get confirmed. these are not normal circumstances, and his chances for confirmation, at least at this point, appear remote. >> at least at this point. pamela you have some insight into the selection p

first in his class from harvard undergrad, graduated harvard law school and did clerk for justice william brennan. he has been in private practice and worked as a federal prosecutor. he oversaw the investigations into the oklahoma city bombing and the unit bomber so he is well respected for his work on and off the bench. he was confirmed in 1997. many lawmakers on both sides have sung his praises talking about what a great pic he is, what a good job he has done on the dc circuit. those words are used by the white house. he is saying we have had a number of people in the senate, those who would say they would block a vote on anyone saying in the past is intellectually superior, well-qualified by the american bar association. there are no questions about his intellect, writing ability or decisionmaking. there are questions critics have about second amendment gun rights, his willingness to recognize the administrative power of bodies like the epa but he has been tough on the government when it comes to issues like terror detainees, things involving guantÁnamo and the pentagon so he has got a very le

he clerked for liberal icon supreme court justice william brennan, jr. judge garland is considered a moderate who worked in both republican and democratic administrations and this to note. he was called a consensus nominee by republican senator orrin hatch back in 2010. all right let's start with where the president chose to draw line here on constitutionality. you and i talking earlier today. >> sure, yes. harris: whether or not that is even true. does the senate have to weigh in? >> with all due respect to the president let's talk about the law, talk about the constitution. he is wrong on the constitution. he is wrong on the law. article 2, section 2, clause 2 of the united states constitution known as the ability of the united states senate to give advice an consent with regard to presidential nominees including supreme court justices. it is a power, not a duty. there is nothing in the constitution that says that the united states senate, once the president acts must act. look at article 1, section 5 of the constitution, not getting in the weeds, but

first for judge henry friendly and then for supreme court justice william brennan. following his clerk ships he joined a highly regarded law firm with a practice focused on pro bono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four years he earned a partnership. the dream of most lawyers but in 1989 just months after that achievement, merrick made an unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted a job as a federal prosecutor. took a 50% pay cut. traded in his elegant partner's office for a windowless closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. this was a time when crime in washington reached epidemic proportions and he wanted to help and made a name for himself going after corupt politicians and violent criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990s including overseeing every aspect of the federal response to the oklahoma city bombing. in the aftermath of that act of ter

president eisenhower's appointees, first for judge henry friendly and then for supreme court justice william brennan. following his clerkships, merrick joined a highly regarded law firm, practice focused on disadvantaged americans. within four years, he earned a partnership. the dream of most lawyers. but in 1989, just months after that achievement, merrick made a highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to learn to public service. merrick accepted a low-level job as a federal prosecutor in president george h.w. bush's administration. he took a 50% pay cut, traded in his elegant partner's office for a windowless closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. this was a time when crime here in washington had reached epidemic proportions and he wanted to help and he quickly made a name for himself going after corrupt politicians and violent criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990s, including overseeing every aspect of the federal response to

garland clerked for the late supreme court justice william j brennan junior. he received his bachelors and law degrees from harvard university. >> people must be confident that a judge's decisions are determined by the law and only the law. he or she must put aside his personal views or preferences and follow the law, not make it. >>reporter: cbs chief legal correspondent jan crawford said he would balance it to majority liberal. >> he would be a solid liberal on the supreme court but considered more of a moderate. he has friends, close with the chief justice john roberts. he doesn't have a huge controversial record. some of those hot button social into trouble in the past. >>reporter: replacing just scalia is a hot button issue during this presidential election since his sudden death last month. several republicans vowed not to take up any nominee and leave it for the next president. >> gop frontrunner donald trump says the next president should pick the next supreme court justice adding he would choose someone conservative like justice scalia. democratic fro

he's 63 years old, went to harvard law school, and clerked for a supreme court justice william brennan. >> i am a history buff. i do enjoy seeing the fabric of our country and how things -- just how they work and how they're made. >> i love american history tv, the presidency, american artifacts, they're fantastic shows. >> i had no idea. that's something i really enjoy. >> with american history tv, it gives you that perspective. >> i'm a c-span fan. >> up next, on the presidency. a look back at the bush v. gore, u.s. supreme court case. the court ruled after the 2000 presidential election that florida's manual vote recount was unconstitutional because it violated the 14th amendment equal protection clause. legal experts discuss the decision and debate whether the ruling was motivated by partisan politics. this is a 90-minute event. >> hello, everybody. it's wonderful to have such a great showing today. i'd like to welcome you to our event. bush v. gore, 15 years later, the supreme court, and american democracy. i'm president of the american constitution society. so happy that you were

. >> reporter:garland clerked for the late supreme court justice william brennan. president obama's nominee sits on the d.c. circuit court of appeals, where he's served since 1997 >> reporter:president obama announced his pick in the rose garden this afternoon. and garland was clearly touched. >>"thank you, mr. president. this is the greatest honor of my life. other than lynn agreeing to marry me 28 years ago. it's also the greatest gift i've ever received, except -- and there's another caveat, the birth of our daughters." >> reporter:now some of the republicans in the senate voted for merrick garland when he was appeals. >> reporter:but that doesn't matter. because the gop says it's about the overall principle of waiting for the next president to appoint a nominee.. >> reporter:what's interesting about that. if this waits for the next president --- say --- a president hillary clinton of president trump the republicans may not like their choices either. reporting live jim osman news kron 4 news. >> pam:jim - while the president wants congress to act - with it being

he clerked for two of president -- president eisenhower's judge edward friendly and william brennan.wing his clerkships, he joined a highly regarded law thatwith a practice focused on litigation and pro bono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four years he earned a partnership. the dream of most lawyers. 1989, just months after the achievement, he made a highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. rrick accepted a low-level job as a federal prosecutor in administration. took a 50% pay cut. this was a time when crime here in washington had reached academic -- epidemic proportions and wanted to help, and quickly made a name for himself going criminals.nt his sterling record as the prosecutor led him to the justice department. he oversaw some of the most prosecutions in the 1990's. including overseeing every aspect of the federal response to the oklahoma city bombing. in the aftermath of that act of terror, more than 160 eight people, many of them small children were murdered. sayad one evening

he's 63 years old, went to harvard law school, and clerked for a supreme court justice william brennan. >> i am a history buff. i do enjoy seeing the fabric of our country and how things -- just how they work and how they're made. >> i love american history tv, the presidency, american artifacts, they're fantastic shows. >> i had no idea. that's something i really enjoy. >> with american history tv, it gives you that perspective. >> i'm a

he clerked for supreme court justice william brennan. what is perhaps even more important he served under both republicans and democrats. carter, bush 41. clinton administrations. he is the chief judge of the heralded d.c. circuit court. many people, people, i'm sorry in many people's opinion, that is sort of like the aaa of the supreme court. so he is obviously very, very highly regarded. the president in a statement saying i'm fulfilling my constitutional duty. i'm doing my job. i hope our senators will do their jobs and move quickly to consider my nominee. that is a statement from the president. of course we're looking forward to him making this nomination choice official. about an hour from now, over at the rose garden, i will be there with you. show you something else very quickly, bill. the white house set up a twitter feed specifically for the nomination process. pretty interesting. they're trying to get their message out, right? they want to get their perspective. they want to engage the public whether or not this particular nomi

old, harvard law in 1977, and he clerked for william brennan.his is what gregory court he -- tipping a delicate balance on the court that could impact decisions on abortion, the death penalty, and voting rights. at 63, he would be the oldest nominee for associate justice since president nexen nominated lewis powell in 1971. fred, you are up first in jessup, maryland, a republican. caller: i just wanted to comment pick. -- on obama's he is no more moderate than ginsburg in my opinion. and one oft courts, his roles was to deprive city residents of their basic rights of self-defense. he would not let you have a gun in your home. yet he is standing next to a president who has been the most unlawful president. obama, he king chooses what laws he wants to follow and what rights he wants to make up as he goes. acting like he was crying about the constitution, but that man failed to reject the conversation -- constitution. in the last eight years, have we done better under liberal policies? host: a little more on what fred was talking about, conservativ

degree from harvard, clerked for the legendary judge henry friendly of the second circuit, justice william brennan of the u.s. supreme court. he has an incredible legal resume. he served in the justice department, worked in private practice before he was nominated to the d.c. circuit court. president obama today told the story of how merrick garland in the u.s. department of justice was sat down after the oklahoma city bopping -- sent down after the oklahoma city bombing to handle the prosecution and how he carely and deftly and professionally handled that prosecution in a way that it would stick and it wouldn't be overturned because of legal mistakes. he felt personally attachment and obligation to the victims and their families, and he carried with him a memorial service bulletin that was given out with the names of each one of the victims. he brought it with him each day to the courtroom. he's that kind of person. a prosecutor but with empathy to the victims and a determination to make sure that he followed the law. he did. president obama has fulfilled his constitutional responsibility, and no

his charm would be employed to call to get the conservative majorities in the court, much like william brennan forged different kinds of majorities. that was an illusion because nino cared more about judicial reasoning than judicial results. the latter will be former the former. only justices less concerned with reasoning could bargain so effectively. although i told him i thought he would be an enormously effective politician i was brutally honest. i asked if he wanted to return to law practice or teaching. that took him back. i explained i was for originally certain bob dole would lose. the declines. i should include a description of one of the most frightening days of my life. need no, two tickets to a baltimore orioles game invited me to join him. most human beings have an inboard computer gene that prevents him from driving at high speed too close to the car in front of them so there is sufficient room to stop. nino apparently liked that gene. by the time he reached the stadium i was sick to the stomach. i have no where in the background. i sat in the orioles' section of the stadium, in t

first for judge henry friendly and supreme court justice william brennan.rkships he joined a highly regarded laum focusing on litigation and pro bono representation. within four years he earn add partnership. the dream of most lawyers. but in 1989 just months after that achievement merrick made a highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted a low level job as a federal prosecutor and president george wh bush's administration and took a 50% pay cut. traded in his office for a closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. this is a time when crime in washington reached epidemic proportions and he quickly made a name for himself going after corrupt politicians and violent criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department. where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990's. including overseeing every aspects of the federal response to the oklahoma city bombing. in the aftermath of that act of terror when 168 people a

huh's judicial appointees, first for judge henley friendly, and then for supreme court justice william brennans, merrick joined a highly regarded law firm that focused on litigation and pro bono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four years, he earned a partnership. the dream of most lawyers. but in 1989, just months after that achievement, merrick made a highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted a low-level job as a federal prosecutor in president georgia h.w. bush's administration. took a 50% pay cut. trade inside his elegant partner's office for a windowless closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. this was a time when crime here in washington had reached epidemic proportions and he wanted to help and he quickly made a name for himself going after corrupt politicians and violent criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990s, including overseeing every aspect of the feder

a legendary judge on the second circuit, judge henry friendly, and for supreme court justice william brennan. following his clerkships, merrick joined a highly regarded law firm, one that practiced focus on litigation and probono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four years he earned a partnership. the dream of most lawyers. but in 1989, just months after that achievement, merrick made the highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and lucrative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted a low-level job as a federal prosecutor in president george h.w. bush's administration, took a 50% pay cut. traded in his office for a windowless closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. this is a time when crime here in washington had reached epidemic proportions. he wanted to help. and he quickly made a name for himself going after corrupt politicians and violent criminals. his stirling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990's. including overseeing every aspec

supreme court justice william brennan jr. republicans are already fighting against this pick.for business at 10:00 eastern time. it's 10:15 right now. you can see they are already getting ready for business and we understand that senate republicans are going to start speaking out against this nominee right now as we speak. we're going to continue to monitor that. well, they are going to have a prayer first. let's not interrupt. let's head to the white house and athena jones. the president spent i guess a couple of weeks going after many, many names. why did he settle on merrick garland? >> reporter: carol, we know that the president had said he wanted to pick a so-called consensus candidate, someone who he believed could get the support of republicans in the senate. we know that republicans in the senate have vowed to block any nominees, saying they won't hold hearings and many say they won't even meet with the nominee. the president has said he will fulfill his constitutional duty to name a successor or a replacement for justice scalia. they wanted to pick a nominee that woul

he clerked for two president senhower's appointees, and judge henry friendly and justice william brennan. he joined a highly regarded law firm with a practice focused on litigation and pro bono representation of disadvantaged americans. within four years, he earned a partnership, the dream of most lawyers. but in 1989, just months after that achievement, merrick made a highly unusual career decision. he walked away from a comfortable and luke rative law practice to return to public service. merrick accepted a low-level job as a federal prosecutor in push's administration and took a 50% pay cut. traded it in for a windless closet that smelled of stale cigarette smoke. crime here in washington reached epidemic proportions and he made a name for himself going after corrupt politicians and violent criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor led him to the justice department where he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990's, including overseing every aspect of the federal response to the oklahoma city bombing. in the aftermath of that act of terror when 168 people an

garland clerked for the late supreme court justice william j. brennan, jr. and he received his bachelor's and law degrees from harvard university. president obama described him as one of america's sharpest legal minds with the spirit of decency. >> these qualities and his long commitment to public service have earned him the respect and admiration of leaders from both sides of the aisle. >> reporter: new york senator charles schumer there for the announcement agree. >> if merrick garland can't get support, then nobody can. >> reporter: but since the death last month of conservative supreme court justice antonin scalia, republicans have pledged to leave the seat empty until after the presidential election and say they won't even hold hearings on garland's confirmation. >> the senate will appropriately revisit the matter when it considers the qualifications of the nominee the next president nominates. garland regarded as a moderate would tip the balancing of court to liberal. >> he or she must put aside his personal views or preferences and follow the law. not

. >> bang through these and tell you some sin decisions, the clerk for the liberal champion william brennanamous guy everybody knows him. a lot of respect for this. chief judge of federal appeals right now heover saw two domestic dmr decisions, unabomber, bombing in oklahoma, and so there are prosecutions in both of the cases. he rebuked cia for not making the drone strikes public. which i thought was very interesting. okay. >> who next? >> terese first hindu seventh born justice and here's what's interesting he defended e jeffrey in private practice before he was a judge. also backed epa in clean ptd power plant not once but twice you should know that. paul is third african-american justice in the court's history. young guy, and he formerly clerked with justice to strike down a u anden dog people charged with crimes if they entered the country illegally. >> interesting. >> very, very -- front runner or know this? >> goland but calls to get a woman in there, black woman in there. all about checking off boxes for groups that are trying to make their voices hard at this time. but probably the

supreme court justice william brennan. joining a highly regarded law firm.o americans. within four years, he earned a partnership. the dream of most lawyers. in 1989, just months after that achievement, he made a highly unusual career decision. walked away from a law practice to return to public service. he accepted a low-level job as a prosecutor. took a 50% pay cut. traded it in for a windowless closet that smelled of cigarette smoke. this was a time when crime here in washington reached epidemic proportions. corrupt politicians and violent criminals. his sterling record as a prosecutor's, he oversaw some of the most significant prosecutions in the 1990s. including overseeing every aspect of the federal response of the oklahoma city bombing. the aftermath of that act of terror, when 168 people and even the small children were murdered, merrick had one evening to say goodbye to his own young daughters. he worked side-by-side with first responders. rescue workers. local and federal law-enforcement. he led the investigation and supervised what brought timothy

natural politician on the supreme court, probably the most natural on the supreme court since william brennan, one of your sources told me after the book was written, so aggravating. [laughter] >> that will be in the paper. sandra day o'connor had a laserlike sensitivity for people's emotional state. she could read people better than anyone else that a successful woman had ever met. i don't know if she were asked to tell hillary clinton what to do, if she could explain to clinton what it was that she could do, it is like magic. and charisma is related to the concept of magic. a wonderful anecdote about this. and o'connor clerk came to interview with o'connor for the much coveted position of supreme court clerk from the chambers of ruth bader ginsburg. the liberal dc circuit judge at the time. otherwise you don't get in -- to interview with a position. the republican appointees's chambers. she and o'connor are chattering away like old friends and o'connor says did you like clerking for judge ginsburg? it was so wonderful, to clerk for a judge where you agreed with her. on every single thing sh

undergraduate law degree from harvard, clerked from -- for the legendary judge friendly, justice william brennanf the u.s. supreme court. he has incredible legal resume. he served in the justice department, worked in private practice before he was nominated to the d.c. circuit court. president obama today told a story of how merrick garland in the u.s. department of justice would sit down after the oklahoma city bombing to handle the prosecution, and how he carefully and definitely and professionally handled thatin prosecution in a way that it would stick and it wouldn't be overturned because of legal mistakes. he felt personally attachment and obligation to the victims and their families, and he carried with him a memorial service bulletin that was given out with the names of each one of the victims. he brought with him each day to the courtroom. he's that kind of person. a prosecutor but with entity to the victims and the determination to make sure he followed the law. he did -- empathy. president obama's fulfill his constitutional responsibility, and now the senate must do the same. article i

received his undergraduate law degree clerked for a judge in the seventh circuit and justice william brennan of the u.s. supreme court. he has an incredible legal resume. he worked in private practice before he was nominated for the d.c. court. president obama today told the how they were set down after the oklahoma city bombing to handle the prosecution and how he carefully and deftly and professionally handled that prosecution in a way that it would stick, and it would not be overturned because of legal mistakes. personally attachment and obligation to the victims and the families, and he carried the memorial service bulletin that was given out with the names of each one of the victims. he brought it with him each day to the court. he is that kind of person. a prosecutor, but with empathy to the victims and the determination that he followed to the law. he did. president obama has filled his constitutional responsibility, and now the senate must do this say. article two, section two of the constitution provides the requirement that the president shall -- shall -- a point the nominee to fil

clerked forand william brennan on the supreme court. he is known for his substance. that regard, everyone, including orrin hatch, ken starr, the prosecutor who brought charges against the clinton, all recognized his value. i think judge garland was an outstanding pick. regardless of who you may have preferred come he is the kind of jurist the left and the right find acceptable and we expect him to be confirmed. host: curt levey, i want to share with you what george will wrote in a syndicated column in support of merrick garland. he says, in his record of deference, garland resembles two justices nominated by president george w. bush and ronald reagan respectively. just as john g roberts and justice scalia who seems to be more revered then read by many conservatives. garland possible -- garland's reluctance to restrict the administrative state's discretion would represent continuity in the chair he would fill. mr. levey: certainly if we are talking about heller, garland and scalia are on the opposite side. scalia wrote heller and harland voted the other way on that ca

his charm would be brought to cobble together conservative majorities on the court, much like william brennan forged different kind of majorities. that was illusion. nino cared more about judicial reasoning than judicial result. latter would follow the former. own a justice less concerned with reasoning can he or she bargain so effectively. although i told him i thought he would be an enormously effective politician i was brutally honest. i asked him if he wanted to return to law practice or teaching? that took him aback. i explained i was virtually certain dole would lose. declined the offer. [laughter] i should include a description of one of the most frightening days of my life. nino with two tickets to a baltimore orioles-yankees game invited me to join him. most human beings have inboard computer gene that prevents them from driving at high speed too close to the car in front of them. so there is sufficient room to stop. nino apparently lacked that gene. [laughter] by the time we reached the stadium i was sick in the stomach. i got nowhere asking him to back down. then we sat on the orio

morgan brennan will be monitoring for fedex as results, and courtney reagan will bring ugh williams sonomaave mike san tolli here along with carol roth. jeffrey cleveland joins the frey, and yes, "fast money" trader brian kelly. great to have everything on board. mike, first to you, how significant is the news this afternoon? >> i think it was significant. it was much more about i think confirming the market's view of the world more than it was adding a lot of incremental information. we weren't expecting anything today or in april. maybe it was a coin toss. with all the supposedly dovish messages that we're hearing commentary about. we're back to like a coin toss for june. so i think it's more about the market getting affirmation that the fed is not on its own kind of agenda with its own schedule ignoring the data. i think that's okay. i do think, you know, being late, letting inflation run a bit is not really that jarring. >> was it clear to you, carol? >> nothing was clear to me. i think the fed is bipolar at this time. i felt like the more that janet yellen talked, obviously we saw tha

justice william brennan, one of the first amendment's greatest judicial champions, dissented from that ruling in words that resonate with us here today. he said -- "instead of teaching children to respect the diversity of ideas that is fundamental to the american system and our constitution, our constitution is a living reality, not parchment preserved under glass. the court today teaches youth to discount important principles of our government as mere platitudes." end quote. history has vindicated justice brennan's dire warning. students report regularly that they have been prevented from discussing matters of public importance in the pages of student media or perhaps worse, they have restrained themselves from even attempting to address an issue of social or political concern in fear of adverse consequences. that is not an environment that values and empowers student voices, and it's not a climate conducive to effective and learning civic participation. we can and must do better. on the 25th anniversary of the hazelwood decision in 2013, every major journalism education organization