Posted on 10/08/2005 8:52:39 AM PDT by JCEccles
The lovably irascible Beldar, the Texas trial lawyer who is one of the two people on earth hotly defending the Miers nomination (the other being our buddy Hugh Hewitt), has posted a convenient link to articles written by Harriet Miers during one of her stints as a bar association honcho. He did this in part to address a charge I made on Hugh's show that Miers shouldn't be taken seriously because over the past 30 years of hot dispute on matters of constitutional law she hadn't published so much as an op-ed on a single topic of moment. Thank you, Beldar. But you shouldn't have. I mean, for Miers's sake, you really shouldn't have.
Miers's articles here are like all "Letters from the President" in all official publications -- cheery and happy-talky and utterly inane. They offer no reassurance that there is anything other than a perfectly functional but utterly ordinary intellect at work here.
Let me offer you an analogy. I was a talented high-school and college actor. I even considered trying it as a career at one time. As an adult, I've been in community theater productions (favorably reviewed in the Virginia local weekly supplement of the Washington Post, yet!) and spent a year or so performing improv comedy in New York. I'm a more than decent semi-pro. But if you took me today and gave me a leading role in the Royal Shakespeare Company where I would have to stand toe to toe with, say, Kenneth Branagh, Kevin Spacey, Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline and others, I would be hopelessly out of my depth. I would be able to give some kind of performance. But it would be a lousy performance, a nearly unwatchable performance.
Would that be because I hadn't acted at their level for a few decades? Would it be because I don't really have commensurate talent? Who knows? Who cares? I would stink. And based on the words she herself has written -- the clearest independent evidence we have of her capacity to reason and think and argue -- as a Supreme Court justice, Harriet Miers would be about as good.
Pod is willingly ignoring the fact that she HAS written opinion pieces before, most notably on the Second Amendment in which she said it was an individual right and that even in the toughest of times, it should not be restricted!
Pray for W and Our Harriet Miers
Right a political running for the Dallas City Council who tells a Gay activist group that she would NOT support efforts to repeal the Texas Sodomy Law is REALLY going "buckle" under the pressure. A person who, unlike ANY "hero" of the Conservative Legal Establishment, has put in writing her clear cut support for the 2nd Amendment as a personal Right is going to be a "weak" choice" A devote Christian secure and active in her faith despite all the derision that probably causes among her glib Establishment co workers is REALLY going be a weak kneed as say...Oh any of the 90 Senators who voted this week for the Terrorist Protection amendment.
Sorry, you are still grasping at straws to rationalize the position you WANT to adopt Marcus.
Sounds a lot better IMO than the frickin' socialist geniuses that have been running our lives for the last 70 years.
What do I know? I'm just an utterly ordinary gnarly old nail banger.
They are among us. Search out some of these posters and read everything they have posted. They are doing their best to be "clever".
That just about sums it up for me. I hope Miers is as strict a constructionist as is sorely needed on the Court at this point in time. I also hope she has the intellect to navigate the shoals of open ended intrusion of the Courts in every facet of our lives. I just don't see an exceptional candidate in this nomination. Rather a trusted counselor to the President who hopefully satisfies these requirements. Unfortunately, nothing I've seen or heard supports this assumption and I just wish W would stop ignoring the needs of his very supportive base (Immigration, Spending, etc.) and provide some reasonable return on this support.
If she isn't able to fulfill these needs, whether because she is not of sufficient talent, intellect or perseverance, who cares. The result will still be the same and the base will be disappointed once again - Including yours truly. I just think this is a needless risk that could have been eliminated with another choice.
The Supreme Court IS an elite institution. It's opinions will be studied by every law student in the country, argued over in every moot court, taught in every university.
If you believe that excellence matters, there is no reason to put an unqualified crony on the court who will be completely out of her depth and intellectually utterly unable to hold her own.
Since when is respect for excellence snobbery ?
These people are not convincing me. The longer they rant, the less I respect them. They apparently think that their continuing tirades are going to somehow make President Bush withdraw her name.
He has done what he felt was right for 5 years, despite the best efforts of the Mainstream Media with their constant attcks and outright lies. He really isn't going to care what those guys on the National Review say, either.
W has finally succeeded in his goal of uniting the country; conservatives and liberals alike AGAINST him.
But, W is playing a very smart hand of poker; while the conservative elites want to go all in, with a hand they have low odds of winning (foolishly putting up a Brown or Luttig, knowing they will get filibustered and not having the votes to ensure winning), W knows that with his choice he has excellent odds of winning (getting another reliable conservative vote on the Court)
I couldn't agree more on Podhoretz. He can't write. He can't think. He's just a hack. His opinions are worthless.
Exactly. Our problem is not in rarefied questions of interpretation in cases that most honest people would flip a coin over. Our problem is with cases where most honest people would see the answer as obvious, but which Elitists don't like, because it doesn't advance their policy objectives.
I would take an honest, decent woman's vote on the court any day over an a dishonest elitist who votes wrong reluctantly because they cannot stand the policy implications of an honest vote.
What pressures would those be? Losing her job? Anyone else here have a guaranteed job for life?
Maybe you mean that the other 8 justices will look down on her and it will hurt her feelings? I don't think so.
She doesn't even have to write anything if she doesn't want to. All she has to do is vote and sign on to a decision or a dissent written by somebody else.
Not saying whether or not she will be a good justice. Jury is still out on that.
But please -- pressures? I'd swap her job pressures for mine any day of the week.
I see by your flag your are a northeastern snob! Most likely on the beltway.
Miers would be the first born again Christian in seventy years.
I'll go with a spirit filled born again follower of the Christ , Y'shua
b'shem Y'shua
Everything you say may be true. How do you know? Well you trust your pudits. Maybe that's enough. I don't know myself. People I very much trust don't like her either but people I do trust do support her. If she can't stand up well to the Senate, I'll join you. Right now I'm waiting for something other than a particular branch of the Repbulican party to try and make a decision. I've noted their opinions as I always do.
No kidding.
Great article for a piece written by an ego-centric idiot.
Let's see one sentence about the subject, Meirs:
The rest of the piece about John Podhoretz.
It's a me, me, me, me, mini-me world
Robert Bork is one such "hero," and check out some his his words on the matter:
"The Second Amendment was designed to allow states to defend themselves against a possibly tyrannical national government. Now that the federal government has stealth bombers and nuclear weapons, it is hard to imagine what people would need to keep in the garage to serve that purpose.'' - R. Bork
Ole Borkie got what he deserved.
"I see by your flag your are a northeastern snob! Most likely on the beltway."
Born and raised in Dallas, Tx. Six years infantry US Marine Corps. Currently serving my party in the "beltway".
Nice try. Mier's is still the wrong choice for SCOTUS.
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