A SCOTUS appointment for Obama in 2010?

CNN is reporting to it's 12 remaining viewers that the Obama administration is quietly preparing for a possible Supreme Court vacancy this year following the June recess. Smart money is picking John Paul Stevens to be the next to step down though he has neither confirmed or denied that rumor. The question is, what kind of justice will Obama nominate?

The easy answer is that he'll go with a radical, activist lefty to drag the court away from the middle. But, how will his nominating radicals play in the upcoming elections? If Americans, already wary of the Obama administration's far-leftward slant, think he's stacking the court against them too, it'll give conservative candidates ammunition on the stump...

"A vote for me is a vote to keep the system checked and balanced against Obama-style socialism and an activist court".

Obama would certainly want to wait until after the mid-terms but, what if republicans make huge gains and even win back one or both houses of congress? He'll have to rely then, on the self-marginalized media to do the heavy lifting for him. The MSM will try to goad conservatives into voting for a liberal justice but, the incumbent carnage of the midterms that we all hope happens, will make the remaining judiciary committee members think twice about abandoning their conservative election promises.

A virtual cookie to the first reader who can name, without cheating, the justices in order(left to right). You're on the honor system not to look them up.