Washington is all abuzz over the nomination of Miguel Estrada to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The intensity of interest stems, in part, 
from the fact that many believe he is on the fast track to a Supreme Court nomination. The DC Circuit would be a stepping stone, as it often is, to a such a later appointment. In any case, there’s a lot being said about Estrada’s appointment both pro and con. On Crossfire Estrada’s friend Ann Coulter told Paul Begala that, “the second [Estrada] gets in there, he’ll overrule everything you love.” But I’m not sure he’s designated her an official spokesperson. In any case, what surprises me is that no one has raised the fact that Estrada was one of the lead lawyers on President Bush’s legal team arguing the Florida recount cases. According to this article in The American Lawyer (helpfully reproduced on the Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher website), Estrada was one of four other “lead partners” on the team Ted Olson put together to make now-President Bush’s arguments about why to shut down the vote-counting in Florida. That’s certainly something I’d want to know more about.
