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Press Briefing by Scott McClellan
The White House ^ | October 13, 2005 | White House transcript

Posted on 10/15/2005 1:44:18 PM PDT by Cautor

MR. McCLELLAN: No, no, let's talk about how -- the way you're approaching things. This should be based on a person's record and qualifications and their judicial philosophy, and she greatly exceeds all the standards that have been set for meeting what is needed to serve on our nation's highest court. She is exceptionally well-qualified. And I would encourage you -- I know you don't necessarily want to do this -- but to look at her qualifications and record.

MR. McCLELLAN: -- let's look at the qualifications.

MR. McCLELLAN: Bob, anyone that knows Harriet Miers knows that she's exceptionally well-qualified to serve on our nation's highest court, and no one that knows her would make such a suggestion. And no one that knows her record and her qualifications would make such a suggestion. We look forward to people getting to know her like the President knows her. She is someone who has not sought the limelight, but she is someone who has served with great distinction and has a distinguished career and record. And that's what this should be about when it comes to the Supreme Court. I welcome the opportunity to engage in this discussion, because this should be based on qualifications and experience and judicial philosophy. Some people want to create a different standard. And, Jim, you can sit there and shake your head, but she's exceptionally well-qualified.

MR. McCLELLAN: Anyone -- anyone that knows her record and experience wouldn't be making such a suggestion.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, some of you all wanted to focus more on religion. We focused on her qualifications and record.

Q Scott, isn't the idea we ask the questions and you provide the answers?

MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, and I was providing the answer. Can I not say what I want to say?

(Excerpt) Read more at whitehouse.gov ...


TOPICS: Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: briefing; mcclellan; miers; press
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To: NCLaw441
Your assertion is predicated upon the assumption that other nominees would have invariably lost.

I could not find statements from any prominent liberal-either inside or outside the beltway, from within the legal community or outside of that subset of thinkers-supporting the notion that Michael McConnell would not have ultimately been confirmed by the U.S. Senate, as it's currently constituted.

Having a jurist like McConnell-instead of the woefully deficient Miers-would have been worth the extra weeks-or even months-that it would have taken to facilitate his confirmation.

41 posted on 10/15/2005 6:14:25 PM PDT by Do not dub me shapka broham ("We don't want a Supreme Court justice just like George W. Bush. We can do better.")
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To: wolf24

Not according to the evidence.

***

LOL!


42 posted on 10/15/2005 6:21:25 PM PDT by jdhljc169
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To: Do not dub me shapka broham

I was responding to your scenario that a conservative nominee was rejected, followed by someone like Miers. Bush, it seems, wanted to nominate someone who would win, and who, having won, would vote with the other conservatives on the court, creating a reliable 5-4 majority to deal with future cases. You can disagree with him, but the logic is not as bad as those who are attacking Miers, and Bush, are suggesting with their insults and attacks.


43 posted on 10/15/2005 6:22:20 PM PDT by NCLaw441
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To: NCLaw441
I still think we would have been infinitely better served under both sets of circumstances.

At worst, we still end up with Miers, or someone who is, at the very least, marginally more capable-after a month or so of dithering, but with the Republican Party intact, if not stronger and more unified-and at best we end up with a Justice McConnell or Justice Williams.

44 posted on 10/15/2005 6:35:03 PM PDT by Do not dub me shapka broham ("We don't want a Supreme Court justice just like George W. Bush. We can do better.")
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To: Do not dub me shapka broham

We disagree.


45 posted on 10/15/2005 6:41:49 PM PDT by NCLaw441
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To: NCLaw441

"It is a hard case to make that Miers losing the nomination equates to the the loss of lives due to terrorism"

How many leftist decisions by a leftist court do you think it could require to undermine the GWOT? I hear you say Bush is now slave to McLame and the RINOs who joined the DEMS to form the Gang of 14. Guess that means no more conservative judges on his watch. If so, it's time for him to go.


46 posted on 10/15/2005 7:20:06 PM PDT by Cautor
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To: Do not dub me shapka broham

"Let's take the worst case scenario, from your perspective.

President Bush nominates someone like Luttig, Sykes, Rodgers-Brown, Williams, or Batchelder.

They are either rejected by the Senate Judiciary Committee, voted down on the Senate floor-an unlikely scenario, but not wholly implausible-or filibustered into oblivion.

President Bush could still have withdrawn that name from consideration-after battling Democrats-and submitted the name of an extremely sub par nominee-such as Miers-and been none the worse for it.

The base would have stuck with him, and we would not be engaged in this acrimonious debate."

EXACTLY! But Dubya wimped out. Let the RINOs kick his ass like a soccer ball. Rolled over for McLame and Dewine. A real pussy. Kiss your agenda farewell Bush. Kiss any more conservative judges farewell Bush. Please go back to TX and cut some more Brush. You're finished in the world of Washington power.


47 posted on 10/15/2005 7:24:42 PM PDT by Cautor
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To: JCEccles

Thank you for your excellent post.


48 posted on 10/15/2005 7:26:26 PM PDT by Cautor
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To: Cautor; flashbunny; dangus; Stellar Dendrite; Ol' Sparky; Hank Rearden
The Miers debacle marks the nadir of his presidency, with regard to domestic policy.

How much do you want to bet that we won't see any more federalist/Constitutionalist/originalist jurists nominated for any circuit or lower court?

Or if they are, I doubt very much that the Democrats will allow them up for a vote, using the Miers standard, of course.

Mark my words, Bush has, proverbially speaking, jumped the shark, and his administration ain't coming back.

49 posted on 10/15/2005 7:29:55 PM PDT by Do not dub me shapka broham ("We don't want a Supreme Court justice just like George W. Bush. We can do better.")
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To: Siena Dreaming

"Personally, I think McClellan is great for the job."

He epitomizes exactly where this administration has now strayed. Bush now finds himself beholding to John McCain and such for any future judicial picks he might make. so he and Scott will from now on being in the position of explaining their weakness. We saw Cheney humble himself yesterday on the Hume show trying to cover this idiot decision by bush to put his crony on the SCOTUS.


50 posted on 10/15/2005 7:30:25 PM PDT by Cautor
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To: Do not dub me shapka broham

"The Miers debacle marks the nadir of his presidency, with regard to domestic policy.
How much do you want to bet that we won't see any more federalist/Constitutionalist/originalist jurists nominated for any circuit or lower court?

Or if they are, I doubt very much that the Democrats will allow them up for a vote, using the Miers standard, of course."

Your comments are worth repeating in full. For all those who say Bush is too weak to overcome the current Republican dominated Senate, too weak to beat back the RINOs in the Gang of 14, too weak to defeat Kennedy and Leahy, too weak to stand up to Pelosi and Reid, I say this guy is finished. Do you hear me? He's FINISHED? Washington is all about power. Bush wimped out. All that "bring it on" bravado was just so much BS from the son of another presidential wimp, old "read my lips" daddy Bush. And to think I once held this guy in such high regard.

Stick a fork in him, he's done.

Mark my words, Bush has, proverbially speaking, jumped the shark, and his administration ain't coming back.


51 posted on 10/15/2005 7:35:06 PM PDT by Cautor
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To: Cautor

52 posted on 10/15/2005 8:09:05 PM PDT by Do not dub me shapka broham ("We don't want a Supreme Court justice just like George W. Bush. We can do better.")
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To: Do not dub me shapka broham
How much do you want to bet that we won't see any more federalist/Constitutionalist/originalist jurists nominated for any circuit or lower court?

There are half a dozen in the Senate right now. Two out of Committee, four in committee. One of those 4 is a shoo-in, but the other 3 are hot potatos.

It's GOP leadership that is not bringing them up for a vote, for the same reason the SCOTUS nomination is meek.

53 posted on 10/15/2005 8:11:53 PM PDT by Cboldt
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To: Cautor

Hogwash.


54 posted on 10/15/2005 8:13:16 PM PDT by Siena Dreaming
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To: Siena Dreaming

"Hogwash."

Thank you for your vaporous commentary.


55 posted on 10/15/2005 8:15:15 PM PDT by Cautor
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To: Cboldt
If I were a Democratic Senator I would demand that the White House pull them immediately, or threaten to filibuster them, based upon that worthless piece of people agreed to with traitorous Republicans, such as McCain and Graham.
56 posted on 10/15/2005 8:27:15 PM PDT by Do not dub me shapka broham ("We don't want a Supreme Court justice just like George W. Bush. We can do better.")
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To: Cautor

I think you're right, but there is an out if the president's handlers are smart enough to take it.

This 'third way' approach of talking like a conservative but governing (domestically) like a big government liberal is now dead. He may be able to ram through more foreign policy things, but domestically, he is becoming a lame duck.

The past two weeks illustrate a way for him to accomplish something in his last 3+ years in office. It shows that the true political fire comes from the conservative base - they are still about ideas and accountability. The left is nothing but wacky theories and 'anybody but bush'. The middle, well, they'll never lead. The "Party over principles" squad in the republican party had the reigns but have squandered it domestically.

So, if they're smart, and Miers said GWB is the most brilliant man she's ever known, they'll pick up on this. Drop the lame 'compassionate' conservative bunk that is just big government with another name. Start picking up true conservative ideas that fire up the base - cutting spending, changing the tax code, reforming social security, securing the borders.

Big, daring, limited-government ideas that will get the base behind them again and help them accomplish great things. That's about the only way they'll find themselves getting anywhere.

This isn't just about the miers pick - the pick was just the last straw. If he wants to be effective anymore, he'll have to stop working for the democrats and start working for the conservatives in his party.


57 posted on 10/15/2005 8:31:22 PM PDT by flashbunny (Loyalty is earned, not handed out.)
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To: Do not dub me shapka broham
If I were a Democratic Senator I would demand that the White House pull them immediately, or threaten to filibuster them, based upon that worthless piece of people agreed to with traitorous Republicans, such as McCain and Graham.

The whole bunch of them, Preident Bush and the Senate leadership, hope that the people just forget the niminees are languishing. Specter won't hold hearings because that would get attention, etc.

This is such a contrived "easy way out," all because the DEMs had the balls to abuse cloture, and the GOP was too stupid to figure out the rhetoric that gets them out of it.

I figured out some rhetoric, and got it past my 10 year old. Basic fairness is not hard for people to get ahold of, but politicians are not about basic fairness. They are so far into deal and king making that "fairness" is a foreign notion to them.

58 posted on 10/15/2005 8:31:32 PM PDT by Cboldt
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To: flashbunny
The President who has been cozy with her for 10-15 years or so?

My old boss had a bookkeeper for 25 years who was his best friend, even a Godparent to his children. Guess what, she was stealing(to the tune of 500K) behind his back the whole time.

IOW some people are not good a judging other people, even their good friends!

59 posted on 10/15/2005 8:36:42 PM PDT by SweetCaroline (Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted!!)
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To: Cautor
Mine was much more substantive than yours.

Yours was full of air.

60 posted on 10/15/2005 8:42:01 PM PDT by Siena Dreaming
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