Posted on 10/17/2005 2:40:50 PM PDT by Cautor
QUESTION: Many conservatives feel profound disappointment at a missed opportunity to steer the Court back to constitutional sanity, even if Miers does turn out to be a conservative vote. They also, as the president asks them to trust him, have lost a lot of faith in Mr. Bush, who pledged to nominate people in the mold of Justices Scalia and Thomas. What damage do you think this flap could have on the political fortunes of the Republican Party?
BAUER: The fallout could be tremendous.
There are millions of “values voters” who have donated blood, sweat and tears to elect conservative Republicans to public office in order get the courts back on track. Our values prevail at the ballot box, but we consistently lose in the courts—whether it’s life issues like partial-birth abortion or parental notification, the meaning of marriage, “under God” in our Pledge or the Ten Commandments on the courthouse lawn. Millions of Americans care deeply about these issues and now, for the first time in years, we have a conservative president and a relatively conservative Senate with 55 [Republican] seats.
But we can’t win this fight if we don’t have it. And, with all due respect to our president, Harriet Miers isn’t exactly the standard bearer we were expecting. We needed another Robert Bork, another Antonin Scalia. Even if Miers turns out to be a pleasant surprise, her nomination has validated the stealth strategy and gives us no assurances that there won’t be another David Souter next time. To borrow one of John Roberts’ baseball analogies, this was the time to hit a home run, and it looks like we bunted.
(Excerpt) Read more at stanguthrie.com ...
Tell me why we keep voting for Republicans? I keep forgetting.....
Let me know on how many of these topics you would have prefered John Kerry.
Gotta get that good number up to 50, and then we can not only fight but win.
For Don Young's Way.
THIS IS STRAIGHT FROM THE MOUTH OF CLARENCE THOMAS, who talked to me and my students for two hours in February: there is no discussion of cases before opinions are orally given in the first meeting on a case; there is no "buttonholing." There is NO INFLUENCE. Each justice, individually and apart, makes up his or her own mind with his or her own clerks. Thomas reiterated this: there was NO discussion, and he said, the most difficult and divisive of cases are wrapped up in FIFTEEN MINUTES. He said they go around the table, in order, and each one states his opinion, but in all the years he was on the court, he had not seen a SINGLE opinion changed by any argument or brief once they got to the table.
So, my friend, it is all about the vote, and nothing but the vote, in the end.
I sat with Clarence Thomas last Feb for two hours with my students and he said the way the court works is much different than the way people think it works based on Hollywood: there is NO discussion of cases; NO "persuading;" NO "buttonholing" where a titanic legal intellect or great rhetoric might change a mind. When it is time for them to vote, each person takes 5-10 minutes to make a statement about why he or she voted on a certain case, then they vote. In all his time on the court, he has NEVER seen anyone change a vote. ALL justices develop their positions independently and do not even talk to each other about cases before the official meeting on a case.
So this notion that we need the second coming of John Marshall is beyond silly. We need the vote, and that's it. Period.
Other than that, I cannot give you another reason with the way the pubbies are acting lately...
I can't say. But that would be a smarter thing to condition support upon than simply taking your ball and going home now.
A "friend of the family"? Where's anything saying that the current President was acquainted with him?
Funny how many people said that Miers must be terrific because Gary Bauer recommended her. Then when he sat down, figured out that he had been snookered, and changed his tune, all of a sudden the same people say he's a clumsy clown who falls off stages and isn't worth listening to.
I just don't believe any of the stories leaked by the Bush administration at this point, because they have been proven false one after another.
They said that the other candidates all refused to be nominated. Not true.
They said that Miers was a distinguished conservative candidate. Not true.
They said that they needed a stealth candidate to get through the Senate. I don't believe that one either. Bush could have called in all his chips on this and twisted a few arms if he chose to. Instead, no doubt, he decided to save his political capital for something he considers more important, so he's trying to twist our arms instead. But there is no issue more important than this.
Kissing Kennedy and then turning around and kicking his base isn't smart.
There's no point saying to wait for the hearings, wait for the hearings, because we won't learn a thing in the hearings that they don't want to tell us. The longer Bush waits to withdraw this nomination, or Miers waits to withdraw, the more the President and the party and the whole country are damaged.
Once again, we didn't ask for this fight. We didn't expect it. It came out of the blue as a complete surprise. And it was truly stupid on Bush's part, either as a political maneuver and or to fulfill the duty he owes to our country as President.
Our country deserves better than this.
You are full of wisdom on this issue. I agree with every point you make. I particularly appreciate your comments about the hearings. I watched most of the Roberts stuff and still have no idea where he stands on anything. I can't imagine what we will learn from the Miers hearings either. I was very disappointed by the Robert's nomination. But this Miers thing has really pissed me off.
Want to do a little review of the bushbot posters that supported the RINO's and explained why it was much much better to have a RINO than a conservative that couldn't be elected. I read hundreds of them.
Since I live in California, my vote don't matter one whit anyway.
Bunted??? More like a called third strike.
"Bunted??? More like a called third strike."
Youuurrrrrr OUT!
Bush and his team stamping their little feet.
WELL SAID! My point exactly........
Lost on some others I see.
"Bush swung at conservatives once too often. Conservative umpire called him out."
Say it ain't so George.
I believe you are saying you long since quit caring what Bauer says. I never really liked him myself. I especially disliked him when he ran briefly for the nomination for Prez. I believe on Miers he was one of the group that rushed out to support Miers.
..'I have long since cared'....
..that's the expression I grew up saying, and I'll stick with it, if you don't mind.
Interpretation......'I don't give a flying fig what he says anymore'...
Exactly.As long as the Dems remain a threat, millions are stuck voting against Socialism, and not for anything- certainly not for 'compassionate conservatism'. The 'new tone' props up the enemy, and we are stuck with a slow, creeping socialism lite.
It's in the GOPs interest to keep the Democrats viable.
Which makes the gesture all the more pointless.
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