Posted on 11/07/2004 10:17:49 AM PST by vannrox
Specter-vision gets blurry
Posted 11:56 AM
This happened so fast, it probably gave the poor guy whiplash.
Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), fresh off his latest re-election success, probably wanted to demonstrate once again that, despite his GOP party affiliation in a Dem state, he's prepared to fight against Bush's most conservative judicial nominees, especially when it comes to abortion and the Supreme Court. "When you talk about judges who would change the right of a woman to choose, overturn Roe v. Wade, I think that is unlikely... And I would expect the president to be mindful of the considerations which I mentioned."
The comment came the same day as Bush's acceptance speech, from a senator who's about to assume the chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Oops.
The reaction from the GOP's far-right base was swift and severe. The Family Research Council, one of the religious right's most active and influential groups, issued a stinging alert to its membership yesterday, insisting that Specter must be denied the Judiciary Committee gavel. In what has to be the height of arrogance and ingratitude, Senator Arlen Specter, the man set to become the head of the Judiciary Committee, warned President Bush against nominating pro-life judges. This is after President Bush campaigned for Senator Specter over pro-life Pat Toomey and is responsible for Specter's re-election to the Senate. [...]
Senator Frist and the overwhelming majority of pro-life Republican Senators on the Judiciary Committee need to stand up for the President and the American people and oppose the Specter litmus test. Our pro-life President and his colleagues in the Senate MUST NOT ALLOW Senator Specter to determine the makeup of our courts! Senator Specter should not become the next Judiciary Committee chairman.
This wasn't the only group to issue sweeping condemnations of Specter. Before he knew what was going on, the senator was backpedaling furiously. It may be too late.
In a quickly prepared statement, Specter effectively said his own words from Wednesday were wrong. "Contrary to press accounts, I did not warn the President about anything and was very respectful of his Constitutional authority on the appointment of federal judges.
"As the record shows, I have supported every one of President Bush's nominees in the Judiciary Committee and on the Senate floor. I have never and would never apply any litmus test on the abortion issue and, as the record shows, I have voted to confirm Chief Justice Rehnquist, Justice O'Connor, and Justice Kennedy and led the fight to confirm Justice Thomas.... I expect to work well with President Bush in the judicial confirmation process in the years ahead."
Not good enough, said the GOP's far-right base. Concerned Women for America, a conservative group, issued a statement saying Specter had disqualified himself from the chairmanship and stuck by that statement even after Specter issued his clarification. "He's a desperate man trying to pull himself out of a hole he dug himself into," said Jan LaRue, the group's chief counsel.
It may be a little too early to say for certain that Specter just derailed his own chairmanship prospects, but it sounds the right-wingers who are calling the shots behind the scenes have already made up their minds.
BUMP for calling, faxing AND emailing Frist and our Senators to BORK (liberal) Spectre.
Contact Senator Santorum 202-224-6324
Tell them in no uncertain terms that Specter cannot be made Senate Judiciary Chairman
Do NOT take "no" for an answer!
Bush has no Mandate?
Just say "NO" To Specter's Games!
Senate Judiciary Committee GOP Members
Contact Senator Orrin Hatch 202-224-5251
Contact Senator Charles Grassley 202-224-3744
Contact Senator Jon Kyl 202-224-4521
Contact Senator Mike DeWine 202-224-2315
Contact Senator Jeff Sessions 202-224-4124
Contact Senator Lindsey Graham -202-224-5972
Contact Senator Larry Craig 202-224-2752
Contact Senator Saxby Chambliss 202-224-3521
Contact Senator John Cornyn 202-224-2934
As far as I'm concerned the ball is in Bush's court. If he thinks he can control Specter, fine. If not, then Specter has to go.
If I were Bush, I wouldn't trust Specter any farther than I could kick him. He has betrayed his own party many times in the clinch, and not just on minor votes. He betrayed Bush just a few days ago in this last election. But it's up to Bush. Bush and Rove are totally responsible for Specter's re-election. Therefore, they are totally responsible for what Specter does over the next four years.
I'm willing to give Bush a pass on some issues, but not on judicial nominations. Judicial nominations are absolutely crucial if we are ever to start taking our country back again. I admired his handling of this matter in his first term. He stood firm, unlike most prior Republican presidents. Now we come down to the nitty gritty and see if he can get the job done.
If this isn't handled right, several million conservative Christian voters are liable to stay home in 2006 and 2008.
He doesn't even have the job yet, and he's insulting the people in charge of hiring him.
Perhaps we should form a useless committee in charge of Scottish Law, and let him chair it for life.
I agree, if Bush can put Spec on a short lease ok. Otherwise, the chairmanship must go to someone else.
I think Bush-Rove are delusional if they think they can control Specter. Specter will play good soldier until they time they really need him, and then Specter will turn on them. Specter is a snake.
The separation of powers will more than likely take its toll as far as the Presidents mandate goes. In our system, the president doesn't set the agenda of either the House or the Senate, leadership in those bodies do, as it should be. I just hope Frist has the good sense to do the right thing and get Specter off the list for Chairmanship of the Judiciary Committee. I give it about a 70/30 chance that Frist will bow to Specter's Senate seniority and allow him to chair the committee. Pressure from outside his Senatorial district will help but pressure from within his district will have the most impact. He comes from a moderate district as does Specter and approval from his district will be the thing that sways his judgement, this is why leadership is so important in Congress. Seniority is very important as far as assignments go and it would be difficult to put aside Senate protocol and Senate rules. We will soon know.
Title: GOP Sen. Specter Vows to Block Bush's Nominees
Source: newsmax
URL Source:
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2004/10/29/165559.shtml
Published: Oct 29, 2004
Author: newsmax
Post Date: 2004-10-29 20:42:24 by TLBSHOW
3 Comments
Recall that alleged Republican Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, upon winning the primary, immediately backstabbed President Bush, who had campaigned for him instead of actual Republican Pat Toomey. Turns out Specter was just getting started.
We now see that the usually pro-Democrat Pittsburgh Post-Gazette endorsed the sharp-horned RINO in Tuesday's general election for this reason: "Before the Post-Gazette editorial board, he promised that no extremists would be approved for the bench."
What the pro-abortion Specter and pro-abortion Post-Gazette mean by "extremist" is anyone who isn't pro-abortion or who otherwise follows the U.S. Constitution instead of making up legislation from the bench.
"Even if he votes nine out of 10 times for the administration, we trust his word that the 10 percent of difference will be a brake on the worst excesses of a second Bush term, if it comes to that," the pee-yoo P-G snarled.
And there are these facts:
Arlen Specter:
Voted NO on ending special funding for minority & women-owned business. (Oct 1997)
Voted NO on banning affirmative action hiring with federal funds. (Jul 1995)
And that is the absolute truth.
Those who voted to uphold Roe v. Wade included Associate Justices John Paul Stevens, Sandra Day O’Connor, David Souter, and Harry Blackmun. It was Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy who would cast the deciding vote in the case. Kennedy was initially going to vote to overturn Roe v. Wade but ultimately caved in to pressure from pro-abortion groups and voted to uphold it.
Kennedy should never have been a judge in the case. He was appointed to the Supreme Court only after the man nominated before him, Judge Douglas Ginsburg, was voted down by the Senate after admitting he had smoked marijuana in the past. And Ginsburg was only nominated because the man nominated before him was none other than Robert Bork, whose fate we already know. If not for Arlen Specter, it would have been Bork, not Kennedy, casting that deciding vote.
Thanks to Arlen Specter, one golden opportunity to overturn the atrocity that is Roe v. Wade has already been squandered. Can we really afford to put him in a position to do it again?
Remember: those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it.
With 45 million babies dead and counting, perhaps it is time we informed Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of the folly of giving Specter the power to replace Tom Daschle as obstructionist-in-chief.
True.. the only reason Sprectre was elected is becuase Bush campaigned for him.. Had Bush threw in with Toomey.. Toomey would have won.. Spectre is Bush's fault and probably of Rove's advice.. Ann Coulter was right about Rove.. ROVE is way dumber than he is being given credit for being.. Stupid NO, but dumber... Lets say the boy is NO genius, like Coilter is..
Ann just loves to say the King has no clothes and has small penis besides.. whoever the King is at the time.. Should nake them cover themselves with their hands but alas, arrogance is a naked defence.. with a faux proud attitude.
Humility and gratitude are rare.. The President seems to have some of that..
MESSAGE FROM LAURA INGRAHAM:
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