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FRACTURED COMPROMISE - (Linda Chavez no longer praises McCain's filibuster "compromise")
WASHINGTON TIMES.COM ^ | JUNE 4, 2005 | LINDA CHAVEZ

Posted on 06/04/2005 8:53:19 AM PDT by CHARLITE

Pardon me while I wipe the egg off my face. Last week I was one of a handful of conservatives praising the Senate compromise on judicial nominees, which preserved the filibuster while guaranteeing several of President Bush's most conservative nominees an up-or-down vote.

I argued Democrats would be chastened into using the filibuster judiciously -- only "under extreme circumstances" in the words of the compromise itself. Boy was I wrong. In less than a week, the Democrats were back to their old tricks, filibustering John Bolton's nomination as ambassador to the United Nations.

Democrat Sens. Robert Byrd of West Virginia, Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and Ken Salazar of Colorado -- all of whom promised only "extreme circumstances" would justify a filibuster -- nonetheless voted against ending debate on Mr. Bolton. Three other Democrat signatories and all seven Republicans who forged the compromise supported allowing the nomination to move to a vote. One Democratic signer, Sen. Daniel Inouye of Hawaii, and one moderate Republican not part of the compromise group, Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, did not vote on the cloture motion. So, Mr. Bolton's nomination remains in limbo.

Many Democrats -- including a fair number of members of Congress -- seem unwilling to accept the results of last year's election. They believed they were cheated out of the White House in 2000 and were sure they would win it back in 2004. When Americans didn't oblige them, they tried to block the president's ability to get his agenda through. They don't want the president to appoint federal appellate judges, much less nominate a Supreme Court justice. They want to punish the president for daring to pick candidates who reflect his own conservative values, though the voters affirmed his leadership.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events; Philosophy; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 109th; ambassador; compromise; filibuster; johnbolton; judicial; lindachavez; nominees; presidentbush; senate; stalled; un; ussenate
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1 posted on 06/04/2005 8:53:20 AM PDT by CHARLITE
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To: CHARLITE

Lesson here: never trust the double-agent McCain.


2 posted on 06/04/2005 8:58:58 AM PDT by citizencon
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To: CHARLITE

And the worst part of it bone head McCain hasn't the mental capacity to realize what harm he has done to the Republican Party much less to the President. As a politician, he is done.


3 posted on 06/04/2005 9:00:45 AM PDT by Logical me (Oh, well!!!)
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To: CHARLITE

This entire story deserves a big NO $hit!! from FR.

many on here speculated this would be the case. Unfortunately the only way to beat these guys at their own game is to find an electable and true conservative in their states to challenge them, especially guys like McCAin. I mean I think Arizona could come up with someone to beat him AND retain the seat.....


4 posted on 06/04/2005 9:01:22 AM PDT by MikefromOhio (www.huntershope.org)
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To: CHARLITE

We know what McCain is. We know what Democrats are. We know what their word is worth.

I'll repeat what I've said before. We have about 3 or 4 months to ram these judicial appointments through, and then things will start to heat up again. The big liars from the MSM will all be back from summer vacation ready to start up their Bush bashing again. The 2006 Campaign will start grabbing headlines. If they think it's hard to make these appointments now, just wait until Labor Day.

They've kicked away five months of lost momentum, and they've made ONE judicial nomination. Not very good planning.


5 posted on 06/04/2005 9:07:09 AM PDT by Cicero (Marcus Tullius)
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To: Logical me
"And the worst part of it bone head McCain hasn't the mental capacity to realize what harm he has done to the Republican Party much less to the President."

"Ace" McCain has never been known for his mental capacity

6 posted on 06/04/2005 9:07:21 AM PDT by DJ Taylor (Once again our country is at war, and once again the Democrats have sided with our enemy.)
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To: CHARLITE

She obviously mistook democraps for human beings.

Then she sobered up.


7 posted on 06/04/2005 9:15:54 AM PDT by the gillman@blacklagoon.com (McCain or Hillary, two Manchurians in a pod.)
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To: CHARLITE


Song bird McCain ?

Who`d trust that maggot.


8 posted on 06/04/2005 9:16:17 AM PDT by Para-Ord.45
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To: CHARLITE

How does Bolton fit into the McCain compromise? It was only for judicial nominees.


9 posted on 06/04/2005 9:28:58 AM PDT by stylin19a ( Social Security...neither social nor secure.)
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To: Logical me
As a politician, he is done.

I wish. However, he will probably add this "deal" to his resume and try to pawn it off on middle-of-the-road voters as a good thing. The far left will not vote for him (they'll praise him in their op-eds, but they will not vote for him). They assume that the conservatives will vote for him (After conservatives finish listing their grievances, the answer would be "Do you want me, or a Democrat?"). So, all there is left is that fickle group in the middle, to whom the "agreement" might look good. He would probably campaign as the "maverick" the NYT says he is, one who is able to buck party lines for the good of the nation, taking a principled stand even if it angers members of his own party (all of which is, of course, false).

10 posted on 06/04/2005 9:30:39 AM PDT by SeƱor Zorro
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To: CHARLITE

What's with Republicans, anyway? They always seem to think that if they kiss up to the 'Rats, everyone will "like" them. It never happens. They just lose more respect for us every time something like this is done.


11 posted on 06/04/2005 9:37:19 AM PDT by MizSterious (First, the journalists, THEN the lawyers.)
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To: CHARLITE

That's the problem with the soft-liners. You can tell them over and over again that Democrats are not to be trusted and yet they always make an exception. It's like Charlie Brown, Lucy, and the football. You'd think he'd learn.


12 posted on 06/04/2005 9:40:29 AM PDT by IronJack
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To: Para-Ord.45

I had a MAVERICK once,i could NEVER DEPEND ON IT.


13 posted on 06/04/2005 9:53:01 AM PDT by realman
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To: Logical me
"And the worst part of it bone head McCain hasn't the mental capacity to realize what harm he has done to the Republican Party much less to the President."

You said more than you may realize.

I can't nor won't speak for others, but when the Senate failed, under Trent Lott's GOP leadership, to have a "real trial" for the Impeached one simply because they wouldn't be able to swing some Democrats to vote guilty, I ended a 32 year active membership in the GOP. I am sure I wasn't' alone.

I continued to vote GOP but as a "non-party-affiliated" voter.

Should the Senate now with GOP majority fail to get an up or down vote on just one of the President's nominee's I will become a non-voter. I will have finally gotten to the point of accepting the argument that I vehemently argued against for my entire voting life (42 years), that "my vote doesn't count".

What good is it to vote for the bastards if they won't represent even the core values we hold dear in fidelity to the Constitution?

This is not an easy conclusion to come to and I would guess that I am not the only one to arrive at this point.

McCain and the gang of 7 are not only damaging the Republican Party they are doing even more damage to the Republic, herself.

14 posted on 06/04/2005 9:55:56 AM PDT by ImpBill (Nothing More!)
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To: stylin19a
I know "the deal," as it's come to be known, did not formally bind Democrats to forgoing all future filibusters on judicial nominees, much less other executive appoint ments. But the spirit of the compromise was to render the filibuster the exception, not the rule, in dealing with Bush nominees. And even if all Democrats were not bound by it, the signatories certainly had some obligation to abide by its spirit. Yet, by week's end, only three of the seven Democrats who signed onto the compromise were willing to invoke cloture on the Bolton nomination, which would have allowed the nominee to be confirmed or rejected by the full Senate.

You wrote: "How does Bolton fit into the McCain compromise? It was only for judicial nominees."

The above quote from Chavez's article explains her reasoning, at least.

15 posted on 06/04/2005 9:59:07 AM PDT by txrangerette
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To: MizSterious; CHARLITE
What's with Republicans, anyway? They always seem to think that if they kiss up to the 'Rats, everyone will "like" them. It never happens. They just lose more respect for us every time something like this is done.

They never learn! For a little media 'love' they sell us out, then are rewarded by the Dems with a smack in the face at the earliest opportunity (in this case the Bolton nomination).

16 posted on 06/04/2005 10:00:00 AM PDT by Rummyfan
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To: Logical me

"McCain hasn't the mental capacity to realize what harm he has done to the Republican Party much less to the President."Can i add my 2 cents worth?You may be right about that,but i suspect he knows precisely what he has done.Cynical in Rainy Fla:)


17 posted on 06/04/2005 10:05:43 AM PDT by thombo
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To: txrangerette
Thanx...I suppose I could have read the whole article...I suppose the excerpt could have included that part, the response and comments would have been different.
I still disagree...no where do I recall anything about "spirit" when it came to this POS compromise.
18 posted on 06/04/2005 10:06:30 AM PDT by stylin19a ( Social Security...neither social nor secure.)
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To: CHARLITE

Better late than never, Linda. The dems are a lying pack of obstructionists and hopefully most Americans will figure that out soon.


19 posted on 06/04/2005 10:11:41 AM PDT by freeangel ( (free speech is only good until someone else doesn't like what you say))
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To: Para-Ord.45

I had a MAVERICK once,NEVER COULD DEPEND ON IT.


20 posted on 06/04/2005 10:11:43 AM PDT by realman
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