Alexander Hamilton argues, in Federalist 77, in favor of the Constitution's protocol for selecting and confirming nominees for the Supreme Court.  According to that established and continuing protocol, it is the role of the Executive to select nominees for the Supreme Court, and the Senate's role is to confirm or reject the nominees. "The blame of a bad nomination would fall upon the President singly and absolutely," Hamilton writes.  However, the "censure of rejecting a good one would lie entirely at the door of the Senate; aggravated by the consideration of their having counteracted the good intentions of the Executive." In Hamilton's time, this might have signified a more delayed reaction of the people to rebuke the Senate for their having "rejected" a "good" Supreme Court nominee and "having counteracted the good intentions of the Executive."  According to the original Constitution,...(Read Full Post)