A study by Cass R. Sunstein and David Schkade shows that Bush has followed the tradition of his father and Ronald Reagan in successfully nominating conservative judges.
On the federal courts of appeals, Reagan, Bush I and Bush II appointees have been sharply opposed to campaign finance regulation, voting to uphold it just one-fourth of the time. Carter and Clinton appointees, in contrast, have voted in favor of campaign finance regulation at twice that rate.
While appointments to the Supreme Court will certainly face great scrutiny, this should give pause to those who argue that if Bush wins reelection, he won't be able to install right wing judges. No one had any doubts about the ideological commitments of either Scalia or Thomas, and yet the Senate approved them.