Jeb Cites David Souter in Discussing SCOTUS Qualifications

Jeb Bush Thursday cited his father's experience with retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter in saying that anyone he would name to the high court must have a record in the federal judiciary.

"Having someone with a consistent judicial record is important, so as to avoid the case like David Souter," Bush said at a CNN town hall in Columbia, S.C. "My dad picked him.

"He probably had persuasive skills. He had high intellectual acumen. But he wandered away from what people thought he was going to be — how he viewed the law — pretty quickly.

"He did not have a federal court record from which to operate," the former Florida governor said. "I would pick someone that was in all likelihood to be in the judiciary already with a proven record."

Souter, who was named by President George H.W. Bush in 1990, was a former state attorney general and court judge. He served briefly as a federal appeals court judge.

He retired in 2009. Souter was succeeded by Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

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