Senate Ends Marathon Debate, Stops Bush Nominee

Reuters ^ | 11-14-03

[Brian S]

Fri November 14, 2003 10:05 AM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats capped a nonstop U.S. Senate debate of nearly 40 hours on Friday by sustaining a procedural hurdle against one of President Bush's four blocked federal appeals court nominees, Texas Supreme Court Justice Priscilla Owen.

Democrats were also ready to block two additional conservative judicial nominees on Friday -- California jurists Carolyn Kuhl and Janice Rogers Brown -- to raise to the number stonewalled to six.

[Dahoser]

Anyone with an ounce of honesty can admit that this was just a waste of time stunt that'll be forgotten within a few days by the general public.

Forgotten? They'd first have to know about it.

[Enterprise]

Yes, they can be recess appointed, but their term only lasts until the next Senate term, which would be 2004. Clinton did a recess appointment and the Republicans then confirmed him during the next Senate term. I realize the difficulties in selecting a candidate, putting them forth and having the RATS refuse to vote, then telling the candidate he is going to withdraw their name and then making a recess appointment, and doing this numerous times. Hell with it. Make recess appointments until 2008, and maybe another Republican will be President and he can make recess appointments until 2016.

[pgkdan]

This was just a publicity stunt. I said so from the beginning. The GOP doesn't have the votes to force cloture and they don't have the votes to change the rules. It would only take 51 votes to change the cloture rules and force a vote but Chaffee, Snow and Collins won't vote with the party. That's what happens when we keep electing RINO's just because they run as Republicans.

[pgkdan]

You are exactly right. If they were serious they would force a real filibuster and wear the SOB's out. Shut down the damned Senate and allow NOTHING to proceed until we get votes on these nominees. Instead we get these circus theatrics performed by emasculated half men who wouldn't know what testicles were for if they ever grew a pair.

[nosofar]

I never did understand how this was supposed to work for Republicans.

[markfiveFF]

It is inteded to work for teh Republicans in three ways.

1. Many of the Democrats in 1994 whined that Republicans weren't approving judicial nominees, and were using these tactics. In the 2004 campaign, they can legitamtely be attacked for using the tactics they argued against.

2. This is the biggie. Many of the nominees are female, Hispanic, black. The Republicans can run targeted ads saying the Democrats won't let women, Hispance and black judges get an up-or-down vote. It won't help much in the black community, but with Hispanics, women, and big-tent independents could be decisive.

3. Many of the judge candidates are Catholic. Dean is polling very poorly among Catholic voters already. Frankly, if the poll numbers I've seen are accurate and continue, Dean is dead on the Catholic vote alone.

In addition:

4. Dean was governor of Vermont. Vermont is 99%+ white. Based on his statement on Southerners with the Confederate flag, Dean is likely to make some major gaffe in the campaign concering blacks also. It isn't necessary to get the black vote; lower turnout is enough.

5. The issue that needs to be pushed hard is education. If Bush/Republicans can get past black apathy - example - one 1,000 student school where I teach has 12 parents in the PTA - and raise hope for education in the black community, the Democrats lose in every way. But he needs to sell, sell, sell that package.

[bandleader]

I would tell them(Repubs)to go to the parliamentarian and ask him to rule on this phony filibuster by The Rats!They have pulled off a rules change requiring the Repubs to come up with a super-majority(more than 60 votes)to put an end to their phony filibuster and bring the Bush nominees to an up/down vote!!This is NOT called for in The US Constitution!!!

[harpu]

"Rather, the pubbieMORONs roll over and play dead based on the threat of a filibuster...(response #25) So please tell us all what magic you would work to correct this problem."

Were I the Majority Leader, I would simply let the demonRATs 'filibuster away' because a 48 hour or more filibuster will get genuine media attention and sound bytes that can be used against the demonRATs.

[Coop]

You are exactly right. If they were serious they would force a real filibuster and wear the SOB's out. Shut down the damned Senate and allow NOTHING to proceed until we get votes on these nominees. Instead we get these circus theatrics performed by emasculated half men who wouldn't know what testicles were for if they ever grew a pair.

And you would be left scratching your head in amazement as your nominees still weren't confirmed, but the GOP had been severely damaged in the court of public opinion.

[Coop]

So you feel the additional few hours would be the critical difference?

[pgkdan]

Nonsense. The 'Rats are 'filibustering"...except they don't have to actually filibuster because the GOP is too meek to force the issue and our caucus is populated with NE liberals who support the 'rat agenda and not ours. If the democrats want to filibuster, they should have to filibuster. It's supposed to be a difficult and challenging thing to do, used ONLY as a last resort. But because we won't force a genuine filibuster the democrats are getting away with stalling any vote they want just by SAYING they're filibustering. This is ridiculous.

One of the primary objectives that many, many conservatives had in the last Presidential election was electing a president who would make conservative judicial nominees. The judiciary was probably THE overriding concern among conservatives and the need to balance the left wing activist courts like the 9th Circuit was one of the arguements made to support Bush when many felt he was being crowned our nominee. Well guess what? We've been gypped, and I damned sure don't like it, and George Allen and John Warner will continueto hear from me, not that it will make alot of difference, but that's the price of holding elected office. You get to hear from cranks like me.

With that said, I have to say that I whole heartedly support President Bush and will support him '04 a I did in '00. But I sure wish he'd learn to fight. And if he's not going to fight...he could at least tell the rest of the family to stop giving awards to the damned enemy!