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McCain and the Supreme Court
Wall Street Journal ^ | 02/04/08 | STEVEN G. CALABRESI and JOHN O. MCGINNIS

Posted on 02/03/2008 10:22:48 PM PST by Yomin Postelnik

We believe that the nomination of John McCain is the best option to preserve the ongoing restoration of constitutional government. He is by far the most electable Republican candidate remaining in the race, and based on his record is as likely to appoint judges committed to constitutionalism as Mitt Romney, a candidate for whom we also have great respect.

We make no apology for suggesting that electability must be a prime consideration. The expected value of any presidential candidate for the future of the American judiciary must be discounted by the probability that the candidate will not prevail in the election. For other kinds of issues, it may be argued that it is better to lose with the perfect candidate than to win with an imperfect one. The party lives to fight another day and can reverse the bad policies of an intervening presidency.

(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: invasion; mccain; primary; rino; romney; supertuesday
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To: Yomin Postelnik

Actually, I don’t believe you are correct. The filibuster against the movement of a judicial nominee to an up-or-down vote was at stake. This use of a filibuster was constitutionally new and novel, and highly suspect. The constitution requires that the President appoint judges and the Senate approve or disapprove the nominees.

What the gang of 14 did was usurp the authority of both the President and the Senate. To say that we “came out ahead” by shredding the constitution doesn’t hold water, to me.

As you stated, we disagree. I appreciate your respect in stating your position, and hope I have succeeded in mirroring it in stating mine.


41 posted on 02/04/2008 10:26:52 AM PST by MortMan (Have a pheasant plucking day!)
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To: Yomin Postelnik
That may be true, but his position was the same as President Bush’s, Trent Lott and a number of other conservative senators.

*****************

President Bush and Trent Lott aren't running for the 2008 nomination.

42 posted on 02/04/2008 10:34:47 AM PST by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: trisham

From the article:

“Accordingly, for judicial conservatives electability must be a paramount consideration. By all accounts, Mr. McCain is more electable than Mr. Romney. He runs ahead or even with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in the national polls, and actually leads the Democratic candidates in key swing states like Wisconsin. Mr. Romney trails well behind both Democratic candidates by double digits. The fundamental dynamic of this race points in Mr. McCain’s way as well. He appeals to independents, while Mr. Romney’s support is largely confined to Republicans.

With many more Republican senators up for re-election than Democrats, the nomination of Mr. Romney could easily lead to a Goldwater-like debacle, in which the GOP loses not only the White House but also its ability in practice to filibuster in the Senate. Thus, even if we believed that Mr. Romney’s judicial appointments were likely to be better than Mr. McCain’s — and we are not persuaded of that — we would find ourselves hard-pressed to support his candidacy, given that he is so much less likely to make any appointments at all.”


43 posted on 02/04/2008 11:23:16 AM PST by zebrahead
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To: zebrahead

No sale.


44 posted on 02/04/2008 11:25:49 AM PST by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: OmegaMan

McCain will suck up to Fat Boy and his lib cronies by appointing a “centrist” to the SC — someone like Souter in other words. When pushed as to how he can change his position on RTL so abruptly, he trot out the old canard LBJ used to justify his turnabout support for civil rights legislation: “Well, when I was Senator from Texas [Arizona], I just represented the people there. But, now, I’m President of all the people, my feller Americans.” Watch for it.


45 posted on 02/04/2008 11:30:45 AM PST by lapster
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To: trisham

Romney can’t even win PRIMARIES despite outspending all other GOP candidates combined and despite outspending McCain by the gross annual product of some small countries.

I’m supposed to believe he can beat Hillary or Obama? No way, no how.

Romney’s electability has been answered. He is unelectable.


46 posted on 02/04/2008 11:32:56 AM PST by zebrahead
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To: Yomin Postelnik

WHAT A CROCK OF $h!t !!!!!!!!!!


47 posted on 02/04/2008 11:34:02 AM PST by SouthernBoyupNorth ("For my wings are made of Tungsten, my flesh of glass and steel..........")
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To: zebrahead

McCain is for amnesty. I won’t vote him.


48 posted on 02/04/2008 11:34:17 AM PST by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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To: therut
If conservatives and republicians do not win the Presidency we are screwed.

This needed editing.

If McCain wins the Presidency, we are screwed. Albeit to a (somewhat) lesser extent than with Hillary. But still screwed.

49 posted on 02/04/2008 11:36:07 AM PST by kevao
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To: trisham

So are Hillary and Obama. Obama even favors driver’s licenses for illegals. But allowing them into office is just fine, right?

By not voting for McCain, you help them win.


50 posted on 02/04/2008 11:43:17 AM PST by zebrahead
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To: Yomin Postelnik

I don’t believe the electablity nonsense, the press is holding their fire on McCain until he locks up the nomination. And when you get right down to it, Arnold was an “electable” republican in California and he has been a disaster for us, spending all his time with his Democrat friends trying to figure out ways to bypass the republican minority to get their liberal legislation passed. He’s even trying to help the far left democrat leaders in the Legislature weaken term limits because they are “doing a great job” and he wants them to stay on.

A McCain presidency would be no different. I’ll take a “Goldwater debacle” over McCain any day.


51 posted on 02/04/2008 11:44:45 AM PST by blue state conservative
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To: zebrahead

A mindreader, are you? So glad to see you have some talent.


52 posted on 02/04/2008 1:04:49 PM PST by trisham (Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.)
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