The Base is Wrong About the Gang of 14

American Thinker ^ | January 30, 2008 | Richard Baehr

[ECM]

When conservatives lay out their long list of apostasies committed by John McCain, one of them is always his role in the Gang of 14, the 7 Democrats and 7 Republicans in the Senate who agreed to a judicial compromise in 2005. The deal that was struck eliminated the use of the "nuclear option" by the then-GOP-controlled Senate, and also limited the Democratic minority's ability to use the filibuster to block certain judicial nominees (at the time the deal was stuck, there were no pending Supreme Court nominations, only Appellate Court nominations were being held up).

To put it plainly, the critics of the deal are flat out wrong. Conservatives should thank John McCain and the other Senators who were part of the Gang of 14 for getting three Appeals Court nominees who had been held up, Janice Rogers Brown, William Pryor, and Priscilla Owen, approved quickly and Brett Kavanaugh approved a bit later, and for Samuel Alito making it onto the Supreme Court without a filibuster blocking his way. And they should thank John McCain for preserving for the Republican Party the use of the filibuster on judicial nominations that might be made by a Democratic President beginning in 2009 or later.

[ECM]

I don't agree with this assessment (some of the criticisms of which, he does cite), but food for thought.

[Westbrook]

Sorry, no sale.

I’ll vote third party or write-in before I vote for that treacherous Left-pandering creep.

[org.whodat]

To put it plainly, the critics of the deal are flat out wrong.

Just another wrong opinion.

[JamesP81]

And they should thank John McCain for preserving for the Republican Party the use of the filibuster on judicial nominations that might be made by a Democratic President beginning in 2009 or later.

I suppose we should also thank him for amnesty and CFR. No thanks, not buying what they're selling.

[Resolute Conservative]

Ditto.

[the gillman@blacklagoon.com]

We’re down to four treacherous left wing creeps to choose from and they’re all about the same.

[stockpirate]

It appears that a lot of Thinkers are in the tank or on their knees for McCain.

[DainBramage]

John McCain and the gang of fourteen did not do what they did to help America, they did it to increase their own power.

And in doing so they stabbed the President in the back and took a pee on conservatives everywhere.

The same bunch of scum tried to push through Shamnesty for illegals...remember that thinker?

If you vote for McCain it will be on your head too.

[A. Morgan]

Richard Baehr you ca go sell crazy some place else, we’re all stocked up here!

[zebrahead]

The Gang of 14 criticism of McCain would actually make sense if a negative result had actually occurred. It did not. It actually succeeded in getting two Supremes and several appeals court judges onto the bench without being filibustered. People on here and on talk radio were salivating at the prospect of a showdown over judges and using the nuclear option to force the Dems’ hand. The Gang of 14 allowed us to get what we wanted and not be responsible for breaking precedent by going nuclear. Bill Frist also deserves a ton of credit. His saber-rattling with the nuclear option made the moderate Dems more willing to go against the possibility of a filibuster that Reid and Schumer wanted to use.

Being critical of McCain over the Gang of 14 is much ado about nothing, in my opinion.

[zerosix]

Sorry, I will never agree with his premise.

[svcw]

I would have liked to see a leader in the senate that said you want to filibuster then filibuster.
You keep talking 24/7 until you bleed out from your calves if thats what it takes.

Filibustering is not tag team 20 minutes at a time. But we get JM who compromises yet again...and again...and again...siding with the dems.

Compromise is not leadership.

[JFC]

“whatever”

[SE Mom]

Have at it:)

[pookie18]

How many unfilled openings are there right now on federal courts?!

[Obadiah]

Looks like me and the Maytag repair guy will be pretty lonely on November 4 as we both sit home with nothing to do.

[slapshot]

The trouble is, next year Harry Reid and his apparatchiks will ram through majority votes on liberal activist judges blowing through filibusters set up by GOP. Make book This will take place next year in a Hillarita or Hussein kleptocracy. Won’t the GOP’s adherance to rules and form look pretty stupid?

[csmusaret]

I personally despise Jaun McCain for a whole host of reasons, but the “Gang of 14” is not one of them. If we get Hillary or Obama nominating Supreme Court Justices I think we will be glad we still have the fillibuster option. By the way. Is it just me or is Mitch McConnel doing a really good job as Sen, Minority Leader? Seems to me he gets the upper hand on American Gothic model Harry Reid just about every time. Way better than old Ironhair ever was IMHO.

[San Jacinto]

I've always said there was an argument that could be made for the benefit of the Gang of 14 tactic, although I would have preferred to have gone with the Constitutional Option and cram it down the dims' throats. Hell, you'll never see the Pubbie minority use the filibuster anyway, and if they did (which they won't) the dims would just steamroll them.

As to the other of McCain's many sins, there are no excuses. He is a suck-up-to-the-media, suck-up-to-the-libs, anti-GOP, anti-Conservative charlatan on many, many counts.

[ExTexasRedhead]

I’m with you and so are all my conservative Republican associates. None of them like McCain and won’t vote for him. No sale here as well!!!!!!!!