Another minority judicial candidate runs the Democrat gauntlet for confirmation.
Posted on 03/02/2003 5:23:59 AM PST by TLBSHOW
The Estrada Lambada
In 1987, the Democrats scored their first major in the judicial wars by defeating the nomination of Judge Robert Bork to the Supreme Court.
These were the glory days of the Democratic party. They overwhelmingly ruled the House of Representatives and held a 55-45 majority in the Senate. They were able to quickly mobilize a large coalition of minority, women's and civil rights groups to fight the Bork nomination. This coalition was joined by a host of environmental, health, labor, and consumer groups, ranging from the Sierra Club to Planned Parenthood. The final vote was essentially along party lines, six Republicans, including Senator Specter (PA), crossed over to oppose Bork and two Democrats supported him.
This defeat marked a monumental shift in the Senate’s authority of advice and consent. Prior to the Bork debate, the Senate would evaluate a nominee based upon his ability and fitness to act as a Supreme Court Justice and not based on his ideology. The judicial landscape, post-Bork, has changed for the worse.
Five years later the Democrats would try again with the nomination of Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court. A host of special interest groups would again take to the judicial battlefield in an effort to defeat Thomas.
Again, the debate focused on Thomas’ ideology and not his qualifications. The Democrats lost the Thomas battle and he was confirmed to the US Supreme Court.
Now its Miguel Estrada’s turn to face the Democrat’s ideologically driven confirmation process. This time the nomination is to the Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.
Estrada represents what many people envision when they think about the American success story.
Born in Honduras, Estrada immigrated to America as a teenager. He graduated magna cum laude from Columbia College and then received his juris doctor degree magna cum laude from Harvard Law School.
Estrada served as a law clerk to Judge Amalya L. Kearse of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and then clerked for Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy.
In the 1990s, Estrada served as Assistant U.S. Attorney and Deputy Chief of the Appellate Section for the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York and as an Assistant Solicitor General in the Department of Justice. There Estrada represented the government in a number of jury trials and in many appeals before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.
Clearly, Estrada has the necessary experience to serve on the Circuit Court. So why are the Democrats attempting to derail his nomination?
Three reasons: He’s a Hispanic, he’s a conservative, and the DC Circuit Court is considered the gateway to the U.S. Supreme Court.
However, the Democrats are having a problem. They have yet to be able to assemble a coalition similar to those seen during the Bork and Thomas debates in order to defeat Estrada’s nomination. Moreover, Republicans learned from the past. Bork had an extensive history of judicial writings and speeches that the Democrats and their special interest allies could draw from to defeat Bork.
By comparison, Estrada has a very small paper trail. This has infuriated the Democrats, robbing them of issues to derail Estrada. This lack of judicial information has forced the Democrats into a corner. They must now rely on the politically risky filibuster whereby 60 members of the Senate must vote to end debate or they must allow Estrada have an up or down vote on the Senate floor where he would surely win confirmation.
In order to please their base, the Democrats must filibuster the Estrada nomination. However, the Democrats run the risk of offending not only Hispanic voters but independent voters who are overwhelmingly supporting President Bush.
For the most part, Republicans are playing this game well. The Republicans are portraying the Democrats as obstructionist and anti-Hispanic. Senator Hatch, Majority Leader Frist and President Bush have been repeating the call for a vote on Estrada.
Many Democrats are getting nervous. John Breaux (LA), Bill Nelson (FL), Zell Miller (AL), and Ben Nelson (NE) have all jumped the aisle to side with the Republicans in confirming Estrada. This brings the number of votes to end the filibuster to 55, five short of the sixty needed.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist needs to be bolder. Never in American history has a nominee to the Court of Appeals been filibustered. In light of this departure from Senate traditions, Frist must act. Instead of allowing the Democrats to conduct a filibuster from home, their district, vacation, or where ever they chose to go, Frist must make them conduct the filibuster Strom Thurmond-style.
Make the Democrats take to the floor. Day and night, a nonstop filibuster. Frist should make the filibuster the only item on the Senate agenda, allowing no other business to take place until Estrada gets an up or down vote on the Senate floor.
Combined with the pressure already being placed on Democrats by the President and Hispanic groups, the traditional filibuster will force the Democrats to action.
Democrats will run the risk of having to explain to the voters why they have allowed the Senate to shut down over a well qualified appeals court nominee filibuster.
As seen during the Gingrich Revolution, the public is not happy when their government shuts down for partisan purposes.
Frist and the rest of the senate Republicans need to act and act now. The time is right to force the Democrats to take action. Miguel Estrada deserves a floor vote and the Democrats need to learn the cost of obstructionism.
Some Cuban (escapee) neighbors, here in Florida, are going ballistic over this.
Being from Cuba which, of course, makes them remember Elian being forced to return to the land his mother gave her life to free him from, Carter's cozying up with Fidel...you get the picture.
I don't think they've ever had much to really get politically united on until now.
I would nevcer give up or give in.....
any time the senate does nothing is good
They said it you got to believe it. Tony Snow tried to nail a Republican senator down on the 24 hour type fillibuster issue this morning, but could not get an answer, just the same old raising the bar complaint.
Let's take this to the extreme. Suppose the R's let no other buisness come to the floor until a vote is allowed, and the Dems hold this up for 18 mos until the election. Who will get blamed for it?
It is important tha R's not argue that D's should "confirm" Estrada...that is their decision. Instead they should be arguing WITH ONE VOICE for only one thing...ALLOW THE VOTE.
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