Granholm seen as possible fresh face

DETROIT, May 17 (UPI) -- Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm would provide a fresh perspective to the U.S. Supreme Court if she is nominated by President Barack Obama, analysts say.

If Obama is seeking to add someone who has had first-hand experience with the struggles of every-day Americans, the governor of the economically hard-hit state of Michigan would provide that. But if it's more important to the president to add someone who is already a judge or to name a person of color to the Supreme Court, Granholm would be out, The Detroit News reported Sunday.

Reports indicate Granholm is among the candidates being considered by Obama to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter.

"Here is someone who would bring to the court legal skills -- she's litigated, she was the manager of a large law firm called the Attorney General of Michigan -- and she knows how people are really hurting because of the auto industry and a bad economy," Russell Wheeler of the Brookings Institution told the News.

"Granholm's an excellent candidate," added Richard Friedman, a law professor and Supreme Court expert at the University of Michigan. "The problem is there are many excellent candidates and only one vacancy."