Posted on 09/04/2003 4:29:31 PM PDT by gubamyster
Miguel Estrada's surprise decision, announced today, to withdraw his name as a nominee for the federal court of appeals was not a surprise to those involved in the ongoing battle over President Bush's judicial nominations.
"It's been long in coming," says one associate. Insiders say Estrada — whose nomination was stalled by an unprecedented filibuster by Senate Democrats — made his intentions known a few weeks ago but agreed not to go public until Congress returned from its August recess.
Sources say Estrada was concerned about both his family and his career. For one thing, the nomination limbo had affected his law practice. "There were certain cases that were not coming to him because of his situation," says one Republican. "Long-term cases, and also cases in which clients didn't want such a high-profile person involved."
Estrada had also suffered personal repercussions. "He has expressed concerns about his family," says one source. "He couldn't make any plans." And being the target of Democratic denunciations had made life difficult for the formerly low-profile lawyer. "He had to change his phone number because he was getting crank calls," says the Republican. "His wife was upset."
Some of the accusations thrown at Estrada during the filibuster fight were distressingly personal. For example, opponents went so far as to charge that Estrada, who as a teenager emigrated to the U.S. from his native Honduras, was insufficiently Hispanic to merit the support of Hispanic groups.
New York Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer once said that Estrada "is like a stealth missile — with a nose cone — coming out of the right wing's deepest silo." At Estrada's confirmation hearing, Schumer called him "a stealth candidate, flying under the radar, heading for landing" on the D.C. Circuit court. "I'm scared of what will happen if he is confirmed."
"This wasn't what he bargained for," says one Republican of Estrada's dilemma. "He thought he was going to be a federal judge, and he ended up being a political football."
At the White House today, President Bush expressed anger at the way the Estrada nomination was handled. "Mr. Estrada received disgraceful treatment at the hands of 45 United States senators during the more than two years his nomination was pending," the president said in a statement, referring to the 45 Democratic senators who supported the filibuster. "Despite his superb qualifications and wide bipartisan support for his nomination, these Democrat senators repeatedly blocked an up-or-down vote that would have led to Mr. Estrada's confirmation. The treatment of this fine man is an unfortunate chapter in the Senate's history."
On Capitol Hill, some Republicans worry that they will be blamed for not fighting harder for Estrada's confirmation. Over the last several months, the Senate GOP leadership has pursued an on-and-off strategy on Estrada, sometimes pressing Democrats for repeated votes to end the filibuster and sometimes letting the issue fade from the spotlight for weeks at a time. In all, Republicans held seven cloture votes, never drawing more than 55 of the 60 votes required to end the Democratic filibuster of Estrada.
"There's going to be a lot of blame going around, saying the Republican senators should have done more," says one insider. "But there are many factors to be weighed in the balance. The leadership realizes there's an agenda to get through, and it's our agenda — we've got the president in the White House right now — and what do you sacrifice to make Miguel Estrada a federal judge?"
Estrada's withdrawal does not affect Democratic filibusters of fellow Bush nominees Priscilla Owen and William Pryor.
In the end, some Republicans believe that Estrada's decision will hurt Democrats politically. Republicans point to recent GOP polling in which just ten percent of the general public said they followed the judicial-nomination controversy, but 34 percent of Hispanics said they followed the Estrada nomination. And of that 34 percent, 87 percent said it was important to them that Estrada receive an up-or-down vote.
That won't happen now. Democrats have won, at least for the moment. But perhaps not in the long run. "If it is a victory, it is a Pyrrhic victory," says one Republican. "The ultimate pain to Democrats will come in November 2004."
Only worried about who gets blamed. Pathetic.
So we keep hearing, ad infinitum, ad nauseum.
In reality, however: the Hispanic vote in this country -- always monolithically pro-Dem -- simply isn't likely to change, IMHO, solely because GOP leadership dropped the ball on Estrada; any more than, say, black Americans rally to Republicanism every time the 'Rats spew more hate speech at Clarence Thomas, or Condi Rice.
There will now be a brief (but, unfortunately, not brief enough) response from the to-complain-is-to-be-disloyal-fo-the-Fatherland wing of the party, stating that anyone finding any fault whatsoever in the handling of the Estrada situation, from Day One to the present, is really a filthy 'Rat spy, and should be flogged with nettles, or somesuch.
No kidding!
Bunch of spineless wimps. I'm sick of hearing them cry about the Democrats. They control Congress for goodness sake. Start acting like it!
I happen to think your post reads more like wishful thinking than what will actually happen.
But, if the evangelicals and unappeaseable conservative wing of the GOP DO abandon Bush after his standing by these conservative judges, then to hell with all of them!
I notice you don't have one bad word to say about the Democrats.
Odd.
Well, Duh. Who's in charge up there? I thought the Dems were in the minority.
As well they should be! SHAME, SHAME, SHAME! on G.W. Bush, his administration and the Republican Congress who did not do all they could to ensure this man's appointment.
It's obvious that the Dems could care less what the voters will think of them come November. We know who and what they are! They don't hide their biases, agenda, and disdain for any-and-all things "conservative." It's right out in front for all to see...and not just in Washington, but all across America.
As for George Bush and the Republicans--who supposedly are in the majority and have control over the executive and congressional branches of our government--they continue to pull back the curtain to reveal their true side as well, and to sum it up in one word:
INEFFECTUAL!
If NOT MIGUEL ESTRADA, then who?
IF NOT NOW, then when?
Under just what circumstance/condition/scenario will it be the "appropriate" time to take a forceful, strong, principled stand and to not waiver until the job is done!
I'll bet that scenario goes away when the Pubbies try to do this with a Rat president. There will be 1 Rat monitoring 1 Pubbie and the Pubbies will still whine about the Rats.
And I'm a Pubbie.
Exactly, IMO, they are actually applauding Hillary's tactics.
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