Judge Luttig Resigns

Via WSJ Hat tip: Hot Air

Judge J. Michael Luttig, one of the country’s most prominent conservative jurists and once considered a likely Supreme Court nominee, has resigned from the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., to become senior vice president and general counsel for the Boeing Co. in Chicago.

In a three-page letter to President Bush today, Judge Luttig, a 1991 appointee of President George H.W. Bush, wrote of his particular pride in helping define the law in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. “In the prosecution of those who committed the atrocities against America on that morning, the court has been asked to address some of the most complex and far-reaching legal questions of our day,” Judge Luttig wrote.

Because of the Bush administration’s policy of funneling terrorism-related cases to the Fourth Circuit, widely viewed as one of the most conservative federal courts, Judge Luttig has had occasion to write opinions concerning convicted Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui and on two U.S. citizens once held without charge as “enemy combatants.” Judge Luttig generally has sided with the government, seeing the executive branch as holding sweeping powers to protect national security.

Sounds like he followed where the money was.

People close to the selection process said that it was unlikely President Bush would consider Judge Luttig for any future vacancies, as political imperatives all but precluded nomination of another white male for the high court.

He has slapped down the ACLU on several occasions. I’m sad to see such a great Judge go. It is important that we keep liberal activist judges from filling the positions in these lower courts. It is important that we start paying attention, because the judicial nominee war has re-ignited.

Also see: Washington Post

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