Posted on 10/11/2005 10:03:46 AM PDT by quidnunc
Because I’m something of a rarity in New York City — a woman who is a pro-life columnist — I’ve been getting a lot of e-mail asking for my opinion of the nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court. My answer has been considered unsatisfactory, but it’s an honest one: I am withholding my opinion because I simply have not honed an ability to read someone’s mind. That has not prevented many right-wing pundits, such as George Will and Patrick Buchanan, from weighing in negatively on the president’s pick.
It seems to me, however, that they are all doing exactly what we criticize the liberal pundits for: jumping the gun to make a deadline. I’m all for mounting a battle for conservative principles, but wouldn’t it be wiser to wait until we’re sure they’re in imminent danger?
One would think that after the cruel vetting of Miguel Estrada by rabid-dog senators, these gladiators on the right would be predisposed to uniting behind the president they supported last year. Senator Schumer, along with Senators Leahy and Kennedy, has been ignoring the president’s right to select his Supreme Court nominee.Now conservatives are doing the exact same thing.The Republicans gave the ACLU’s counsel, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a pass because they acknowledged President Clinton’s right to select his Supreme Court justices. It’s appalling that they are showing less respect for President Bush.
-snip-
The extreme right-wing base may feel that Mr. Bush betrayed them, but I think that, sadly, the opposite is true.
-snip
Preach it sister! Can I have an 'Amen'!?
(Excerpt) Read more at daily.nysun.com ...
Nice find and spot on.
"Ginsburg should have been rejected."
Yes, it really is a pity more Senators didn't stand up and say:
"This judge's view of the Constitution is so contrary to what the Constitution really is that she is in no way capable of being a defender of it when she puts on a Judge's robes.
As such, *my* duty to the Constitution requires me to oppose her confirmation with all my powers."
Have any of the current court ever tried a criminal case in court? Ginsberg maybe with the ACLU? To my knowledge, those who have had private practice have all been in appellate law not criminal law. Actually, Miers has far more experience in private practice than any of the current justices. Real world vs ivory tower?
I wonder how someone like myself - who has endless contempt for university degrees, culture snobs, and the two-party scam - ended up being an "elitist".
I'm sure President Bush would love to have put Janice Rogers Brown, or Samuel Alito, or Edith Jones on the Court. But there's a little problem going by the name of Arlen Specter who, along with some RINO buddies, stand in the way. We have to assume that the President has a much better understanding of where they stand on the various candidates than we do. And that he knows better than us whether a battle with the Dems and RINOs over one of the arch-conservative candidates is one he can win.
He's been meeting and caucusing with them. We haven't. Based on his previously demonstrated desire to place real judicial conservatives on the Court, the Miers pick can only be explained by Dubya believing that she's the most conservative candidate he can get confirmed.
Some people might not like that conclusion, and might demand a battle. But we don't know what cards he's holding, and whether or not its a winning hand. He knows that a lot better than we do.
Try to get a few more seats in the Senate, put in a different Chair, and try to do better after the 2006 elections. That's really the best option at this point.
Technically, I'm an elitist out of Stanford. But I'm also a mechanical engineer (down and dirty people who work in the real world), and I rejected just about everything cultural I was fed at Stanford.
So, what is the opposite of an elitist? A mediocritist? a know-nothing? Bah, using elitism as an argument is crapola from the WH spinmeisters. It sure doesn't sound like Rove in charge, more like the cleaning lady.
The further irony of the charge is that if SCOTUS is not an "elite" institution, what is?
The dictionary defines "elite" as:
#
# Small group of people that posses disproportionally large amounts of scarce sources of influence over political decision-making: money, social prestige, political power, etc...
This is a dead-on description of the folks who are trying to ram this nominee down our throats while suppressing dissent.
Absolutely, he needs to be replaced on the judicial committee. Remember this group of 55 couldn't get John Bolton confirmed as he withered on the vine for months until President Bush gave him a recess appointment. I have my doubts, 55 senators or not, as to whether one of the 'brand name' nominees would ever get confirmed.
Whichever. The sad fact is, the Republican Base and the Republican Party are in the midst of a divorce -- and no amount of namecalling from the mushy moderates will patch things up.
I'm just waiting for the mushy moderates to start calling us 'un-American'.
HE llo.
Amazing how Ms. Colon (aptly named, BTW) couldn't even get that one right.
Laz, this is nice stinky domestic dispute. The GOP needs to take this very seriously. The base has been waiting for years to have this pick and Bush ticked a group of his most loyal supporters. Is anyone in the GOP leadership willing to allow a schism in the party for Harriet Miers?
I thought that you dessenters are now like 99% of the party. You can easily remove Miers; let us say by 3:30 PM this afternoon.
... which, in itself, isn't all that big a deal. Power has it's privileges.
However, I've read some things about Meirs that is outright scary. One such episode was this one: (Read here, but I cannot find the excerpt) When Meirs was being reviewed for White House Counsel, she was vetted by a dozen or so White House officials. After she left the room, there was silence. Someone piped up, hopefully, "Well, maybe if we get her a really strong deputy counsel....."
Negative. Bush can betray his base with no ramifications (other than, say, 2006 and 2008).
comrade kerry and fat swimmer ted support her? do you have a source
I deeply resent the eyeliner comments.
I have my reasons.
I think you'll be surprised at the number of conservatives who can't find the motivation to bring themselves to vote for big-spending socialists, even those with a (R) attached.
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