The Supreme Court Shortlist

So, who’s on the shortlist to be President Obama’s first pick for the Supreme Court? NBC’s First Read reports the front-runners to replace retiring Justice David Souter are Diane Wood of the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, Solicitor General Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor of the 2nd Circuit, Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and Merrick Garland of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Of the five women and one man, one is Hispanic and all are in their late 40s or early 50s except Wood (58) and Garland (56). First Read is betting on Obama naming someone he knows well or trusts personally—narrowing the field to Wood, Kagan, and Napolitano. A key point: The president has “been as impressed with Napolitano as anyone in his cabinet. They click. That matters.”