With Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist's death giving many people agita about WWDD (What Will Dubya Do?), President Bush has done what pundits have predicted (and we're not giving pundits that much credit, because given the hours they had to yak about the loss of Rehnquist, of course they were going to come up with this scenario) and nominated Supreme Court nominee John Roberts to be Chief Justice; here's the White House statement. Now, that must be some kind of burn to the sitting conservative justices, but Bush probably wants to make sure he can choose the Chief Justice for the next 20+ years. Which makes Gothamist want to delve into some Supreme Court history, or, better yet, ask our lawyer friends if the other Justices or Congress can de-Fhief a Justice (we're just curious!). more ›

that someday Law & Order will filter to the highest levels of government. We just didn't figure that it would be in this way: Fred Thompson, who plays District Attorney Arthur Branch, has agreed to be an adviser to President Bush for the Supreme Court justice selection process. Apparently, one term in the Senate and a role on America's longest running cop-and-lawyer show can launch you into guiding one of the most important decisions for our country! Now Gothamist wonders if Thompson can do anything about Tom Delay's complaining about L&O mentioning him in an episode...or if writers will be trying to say anything about the current administration! more ›

The Supreme Court ruled, in a 5-4 decision, that the government can seize private property and turn it over to developers, under the auspices of eminent domain. The Daily News points out that this probably warms of the hearts of developers, taking, for instance, projects like Bruce Ratner's Brooklyn Nets arena or Columbia University's development of 18 acres in Harlem...or any projects that have a "public purpose" element. In the end, it's up to the state government to determine whether or not the property should be seized, so many local lawmakers are pleading with the State Legislature to review eminent domain. more ›