White House counsel Bob Bauer, President Barack Obama's point man in the search for a new Supreme Court justice, manages to get credit both for an even temperament and his finesse with a sledge hammer.

The combination is evident in one of Bauer's favorite memories from the 2008 presidential primaries, when Obama campaign aides worried that opposing forces were trying to depress voter turnout. Bauer, the campaign's top lawyer, confidently reassured staffers that he'd have anyone engaged in such conduct arrested.

It was a morale-boosting bit of bluster that campaign workers quickly turned into a T-shirt that had "I (heart) Bauer" on the front and his quote — "We may have to arrest people" — splashed across the back.