Cornyn gets seat on judiciary panel; PFAW memo: "The Approaching Armageddon on Judicial Nominations"

The Dallas Morning News ^ | January 7, 2003 | By TODD J. GILLMAN / The Dallas Morning News

[MeekOneGOP]

Cornyn gets seat on judiciary panel

Texas senator had campaigned for more conservative judges

01/07/2003

By TODD J. GILLMAN / The Dallas Morning News

During the fall Senate campaign, John Cornyn vowed to fight for more conservative federal judges.

On Monday, GOP leaders granted the former attorney general and Texas Supreme Court justice his wish for a seat on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

One of the first orders of business may be to reconsider his former colleague, Texas Supreme Court Justice Priscilla Owen, to a federal appeals bench - a nomination the committee shot down when Democrats controlled the Senate.

President Bush has said he will renominate Justice Owen now that Republicans control the Senate. One liberal advocacy group, People for the American Way, issued a memo Monday titled "The Approaching Armageddon on Judicial Nominations" that reflected the looming battles Mr. Cornyn may soon face as a member of the Judiciary Committee.

He is one of 10 new senators who will take the oath of office Tuesday. But thanks to the early departure of Sen. Phil Gramm, he actually joined the Senate in a low-key ceremony on Dec. 2.

Mr. Cornyn also received two other committee assignments Monday that he hopes will yield better highways and infrastructure for Texas: Budget and Environment and Public Works. He had been given a seat on the Armed Services Committee.

---

Online at: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dallas/nation/stories/010703dnnatcornyn.99e69.html

[Gracey]

One liberal advocacy group, People for the American Way...

Don't you wonder why these ANTI-American, anti constitution socialists have "American" in the title of their org? It's actually "People for the UNAMERICAN Way!

[txrangerette]

Clarence Thomas being an exception.
And Reagan missed it with O'Connor.

[Victoria Delsoul]

Excellent news, Meek. Thanks for letting me know.

[Don'tMessWithTexas]

There is a story about Brennan, which could be apocryphal, that he was picked by an Eisenhower advisor when he heard him give a speech that was unapologetically conservative in its judicial philosophy. The advisor told Ike: He's Irish, He's Catholic, He's from New Jersey and HE'S A CONSERVATIVE!

Unfortunately, Brennan was reading a text that was drafted by a colleague who was originally scheduled to give the speech but had been called away on an emergency. The speech did not reflect Brennan's views at all. However, the advisor was not in the hall at the beginning of the speech.

[David Isaac]

One would think with a post of such importance, a little more research would be in order.

There is a point I would make and keep on making, the vast majority of the times that things are considered to have happened "accidentally" or as the natural result of a natural sequence, nothing could be furthur from the truth. Things happen precisely because someone wishes them to occur. This is true back to the beginnings of man's rational thought, using the term rational very loosely.

[FBD]

"People For The Un-American Way warn of the approaching Armageddon"

LOL!!! Oh that's good! Bring it on, libs...

Thanks for the ping, Meek.

[WOSG]

Earl Warren was a GOP governor from CA, and Eisenhower was hardly a RW ideologue, so there really is no accounting for whether this was a 'mistake'. Certainly Brown v. Board of Ed was a great step *forward* for the country, even if the Warren court made lousy decisions later on.
The GOP had wimped out on New Deal and so missed the boat to put back on the SC the kind of judges who 'overturned' early new deal legislation.

... but Souter OTOH is still a current issue and a warning ...

I am afraid that Bush may want to nominate Al Gonzales to the USSC to get the 'first' X appointed credit, just like Reagan got with Sandra Day OConner. Alas, I think he likewise may be a weathervane moderate - at best. He's a former Democrat. Anyone who was a Democrat post 1980 should be considered suspect imho. Another Souter???

OTOH, Estrada sounds like a solid conservative - no wonder the Dems were going after him.

[MeekOneGOP]

LOL ! You bet...