Friday Must-Reads: Souter Out

Supreme Court Justice David Souter, long unhappy with Washington life, has announced that he will retire in June—which, as Shane has already pointed out, will lead likely lead to some partisan wrangling. Another headline reminds us of the power SCOTUS justices have over election law: It seems likely that Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires districts with a history of discrimination to receive federal permission before changing voting regulations, will be struck down. And in in Minnesota’s Supreme Court, Norm Coleman has submitted his brief. The year’s latest advocacy campaigns keep heating up, as VoteVets.org begins advertising in favor of clean energy and the SEIU asks news channels to take down an ad put  out by Conservatives for Patients Rights. Over at Politico, Ben Smith analyzes the National Council for a New America letter I linked to yesterday, which attempts to lay out a new policy landscape for the GOP. The summary: The authors want to drop wedge issues. But today’s campaign news is largely good for the Republican Party, as Kentucky Sen. Jim Bunning’s likely retirement makes that seat much safer and Illinois Rep. Mark Kirk leads or ties his likely Democratic opponents for Sen. Roland Burris’s seat. Down in Virginia, the Democratic Governors Association has dropped another $740,000 into what is essentially an anti-Bob McDonnell PAC, meaning their worried about holding onto the state’s governorship.