Posted on 10/05/2005 10:29:24 AM PDT by new yorker 77
She's polite. Shy. Smart. Modest. Hard-working. Goes to church. Helps the poor. She immediately won the praise of the leader of the Democrats in the Senate. And yet she may end up making Justices Scalia and Thomas look like a couple of card carrying lefties.
I'm exaggerating for effect, of course, but the point is that despite the dramatic tearing of flesh that has gone on in some conservative quarters over the last 48 hours, the indications are that Bush has chosen someone who is extremely culturally conservative. Based on what little we know at this point, he's also chosen someone who favors the Patriot Act, wider presidential authority and an aggressive national security posture.
I understand the disappointment on the right. Conservatives wanted a first-rate legal and ideological gladiator to go do battle with liberals in the Senate. Instead, Bush gave them the Church Lady.
But gladiators don't receive - nor should they expect to be given - any mercy from their opponents. A humble, accomplished, God-fearing woman is a different proposition. Those who know this process understand that the first few hours and days are absolutely critical in shaping the image of the nominee for the public. Thus far, aside from the griping of conservatives, Miers' public image is developing rather favorably and isn't being radically influenced by attacks from left-wing interest groups the way other nominations would have been.
George Will argues this morning that these types of political considerations are unimportant. Qualifications are all that matter and, according to Will, Miers isn't remotely qualified:
The wisdom of presumptive opposition to Miers's confirmation flows from the fact that constitutional reasoning is a talent -- a skill acquired, as intellectual skills are, by years of practice sustained by intense interest. It is not usually acquired in the normal course of even a fine lawyer's career.
I find this line of reasoning deeply elitist and unpersuasive. Will is setting a standard (years of practice of constitutional reasoning sustained by intense interest) that would exclude a vast number of people who would make perfectly fine justices (including Senators like Orrin Hatch) as well as a number of those who've served ably on the court (including William Rehnquist who spent 16 years in private practice in Arizona and then only 3 years in the Nixon administration before being nominated to the Court).
I also find Will's complete and total deference to constitutional scholarship unsettling. Yes, we want talented, high-caliber appointments to the Court which represents, we should remind ourselves, a co-equal branch of government. It's not at all convincing to say, if you follow Will's logic, that a court made up of nine of the country's most eminent, ivy-league pedigreed constitutional scholars is going to be any better for America than a Court composed of justices who have demonstrable talent of varying legal backgrounds and perspectives. And it is undeniable that Harriet Miers is an accomplished lawyer.
So where does all this leave us? I suspect most Republicans and conservatives will become more comfortable with Miers as we move forward and most Democrats, including Harry Reid, are going to find themselves with an increasing urge to sink her nomination.
One way of doing that is to attack her religious convictions and to imply they make her unfit to serve. This is a very perilous strategy. The other way for the Democrats to derail Miers is to argue that she is unqualified due to a lack of experience and/or intellectual-horsepower. Still a tough case for the Democrats, in my opinion, though certainly a lot easier to make when conservatives are already out there doing it for them.
My objections are the following:
1. She is 60 years old. Yes, I said it. We need someone in their late 40's early 50's at the oldest.
2. She has zero judicial experience. Sure it can be a plus, but she has been a corporate litigator which to me does not signify that she has had the opportunity to review or educate herself on Con Law issues.
3. There are literally scores of more qualified candidates with a proven reliable record.
4. This pick makes GWB look weaker than he already is. It makes him look like he is afraid of a fight.
5. She was Reid's first pick. Enough said.
6. She has no record of ever being a conservative. Has she ever been part of the Federalist Society? Written law review articles? Volunteered or worked for conservative causes or candidates other than GWB?
7. Trust me is not good enough in this case.
Do you want to see any of those tickets?
Among the current justices, 5 received their LLBs from Harvard (Roberts, Scalia, Kennedy, Souter, and Breyer), one from Yale (Thomas), and one from Columbia (Bader-Ginsberg who also attended Harvard Law). O'Connor (Stanford) and Stevens (Northwestern) were the exceptions.
Not particularly. The dream ticket for me would be Rice/Allen. Unfortunately, that's all it is...a dream.
Roger that ~ well stated, Paradox!
Her vita is very like Rehnquist's.
The constitution was not written by constitutional scholars. :-)
Who was the last one?
Ah.....a Carter voter.
From an Evangelical Christian point of view there is considerable EVIDENCE Miers will be to the right of Scalia and Thomas.
"The constitution was not written by constitutional scholars. :-)"
Ahhahahhahahaha......
So true!
My objections are the following:
1. She is 60 years old. Yes, I said it. We need someone in their late 40's early 50's at the oldest.
So we should discriminate based on age!?! Are you going to tell Rummy, Cheney, even Bush himself to get the hell out because they're past 50?
2. She has zero judicial experience. Sure it can be a plus, but she has been a corporate litigator which to me does not signify that she has had the opportunity to review or educate herself on Con Law issues.
Given the judicial tyranny of the last decade, I for one am glad to have somebody from the "real world." And if you don't think that the real world give a person an education, then you've really bought into the snobbery of the elitist cults.
3. There are literally scores of more qualified candidates with a proven reliable record.
Proven track record of what? O'Connor had a track record, Kennedy had a track record, Souter had a track record. And they all turned out to be great disasters for the conservative cause.
4. This pick makes GWB look weaker than he already is. It makes him look like he is afraid of a fight.
As has been said many times, never play poker with GWB. It's amazing how conservatives think he's the greatest when he does things they like, and then turn right around and think he's a weak moron when he does things they disagree with.
5. She was Reid's first pick. Enough said.
God forbid that any conservative can actually be "liked" by the other side of the aisle.
6. She has no record of ever being a conservative. Has she ever been part of the Federalist Society? Written law review articles? Volunteered or worked for conservative causes or candidates other than GWB?
Reagan had a very liberal record...right up until his time for choosing speech in 1964.
7. Trust me is not good enough in this case.
The "Church Lady"? Isn't that special.
High Court Weighs in on Assisted Suicide By GINA HOLLAND, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 29 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Newly installed Chief Justice John Roberts on Wednesday sharply questioned a lawyer arguing for preservation of Oregon's physician-assisted suicide law, noting the federal government's tough regulation of addictive drugs.
The 50-year-old Roberts, hearing his first major oral argument since succeeding William H. Rehnquist at the helm of the court, seemed skeptical of the Oregon law, and the outcome of this case was as unclear after the argument as before.
At the outset, Roberts laid a barrage of questions on Oregon Senior Assistant Attorney General Robert Atkinson before he could finish his first sentence...
One can only hope - but this looks like a very very good start :-)
Have you seen anything that says she is to the left of them?? His odds for being right about what he says are as good as Wills' are.
Let me get this straight... Her OWN words and beliefs (and past actions) carry less weight than the words of an opposition leader?
Nope.
Pence/Sanford
Or variants thereof.
Thats okay, but another Freeper mentioned that Jimmah Carter claimed he was a Christian too, and he has done visited almost incalcuable damage on the American judiciary. I just can't take this one on faith.
GWB hasn't failed anyone ~ Stop Sniveling and Get A Grip!
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