Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Ted Kennedy's Grand Design
CNSNews.com ^ | February 27, 2003 | Robert D. Novak

Posted on 02/28/2003 5:17:10 AM PST by Stand Watch Listen

The Democratic filibuster against judicial nominee Miguel Estrada has little to do with the 41-year-old Honduran immigrant. It is part of a grand design to talk to death a succession of conservative judges selected by President Bush.

Democrats are intent on keeping the Senate from voting on any appellate nominations that do not meet the party's specifications.

This extraordinary design, without precedent in two centuries of judicial nominations, was launched Jan. 30 in the office of Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle. Present were Assistant Leader Harry Reid and six Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats. With all pledged to secrecy, the fateful decision was made to filibuster Estrada's nomination.

That was only the beginning. One Judiciary Committee member there was Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, the Senate's 71-year-old liberal lion. In private conversations with Daschle and in Democratic caucuses, Kennedy has pressed a plan to prevent President Bush from putting his ideological stamp on the federal bench. As Republicans returned this week from recess, they had no immediate response to this threat.

Internal Senate sources depict a Senate minority on an audacious mission. Rare use of the filibuster to keep a judicial nominee off the bench is only the tip of the iceberg. Multiple filibusters would generate the first full-scale effort in American history to prevent a president from picking the federal judges he wants.

At the Jan. 30 meeting in Daschle's office, the eight senators agreeing to filibuster the Estrada nomination did not discuss his merits or demerits as a nominee for the District of Columbia appeals court, second in importance only to the U.S. Supreme Court. Rather, the objections to Estrada were political and procedural.

His confirmation, they agreed, would set a precedent that appellate nominees need not answer detailed questions and would make it hard to stop him as a possible future Supreme Court nominee. The senators talked about slowing down a Bush "assembly line" of conservative nominees and cited support from an energized Democratic base.

Considering these politicized views, what Kennedy said when he took the Senate floor five days later sounds disingenuous. Demand for Estrada's memos as a government lawyer, Kennedy said, "would be helpful in understanding Mr. Estrada's fitness for a judgeship"-as if he had not decided to talk the nomination to death.

Off the Senate floor, Kennedy was more candid. According to Senate sources, he urged Daschle to devise a long-term strategy: to make a short list of judicial nominees that the Democrats would keep from ever coming to a vote. Privately, Kennedy talks frankly of a filibuster strategy.

While conceding that Estrada is "intelligent," Kennedy has told colleagues that he must be filibustered because of the need to win an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation with the White House. Kennedy tells his younger associates that Bush's application of an ideological litmus test constitutes the "worst" judicial nomination process he has seen in 40 years of service. He accuses the president of daring Senate Democrats to keep ideologues off the court and refers to Estrada as a "stealth right-wing zealot." Such comments belie the notion that Bush's nominees would be given a Senate vote if only they would answer some questions.

Such an intractable position raises the question of how Democrats would expect to get any judges confirmed in the event that Bush is defeated for re-election but the Senate remains Republican in the 2004 voting.

The Republican Judiciary Committee chairman, Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, is outraged by the Democratic strategy and ready to respond in kind. But Hatch will not be chairman in 2005, thanks to Republican term limits. Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, next in GOP seniority, as chairman might stop the cycle of vengeance.

That's what worries Republican strategists, who talk about jumping conservative Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona above Specter to guarantee a strong hand in the confirmation wars.

Well in advance, there is consideration of blocking a vote on future judicial nominees by a Democratic president until the Republican nominees who had been blocked by filibuster are confirmed. That is the morass into which the Senate is being led by Teddy Kennedy, its second most senior member.

Creators Syndicate, Inc.





TOPICS: Editorial; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS:
Related Articles: and past Democratic Senate obstructionism

Linda Chavez: Republicans Need To Call Dems' Bluff On Estrada Nomination
Source: CNSNES.com; Published: February 26, 2003; Author Linda Chavez

Senate Democrats Can't Get Their Facts Straight
Source: CNSNews.com ; Published: February 14, 2003; Author: John Nowacki

Leahy’s Surprise Attack
Source: National Review Online; Published: October 9, 2002; Author: Byron York

Shedded by Judiciary: Senate Democrats cast off another appointee
Source: Wall St Journal; Published: October 9, 2002

Miguel Estrada May be Next Victim Of Judiciary's 'Gang Of Ten'
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: September 09, 2002; Author: Paul M. Weyrich

Toward Priscilla Owen, Not Even The Pretense Of Fairness
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: August 01, 2002; Author: John Nowacki

The Owen Nomination: Liberals Don't Let Truth Stand In Their Way
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: July 18, 2002; Author: John Nowacki

Democrats Hold Judicial Nominations for 406 Days and Counting
Source: CNSNEWS.com; Published: June 21, 2002; Author: Christine Hall

Judge The Senate Judiciary Committee Not By What It Says, But What It Has Done
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: | June 06, 2002; Author: John Nowacki

The Left Keeps Trying -- And Failing -- To Smear Brooks Smith
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: May 16, 2002; Author: John Nowacki

Pickering Battle Places Congress on Verge of 'Institutional Crisis'
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: March 07, 2002; Author: Jeff Johnson

Make them pay for 'Borking': David Limbaugh rebukes spineless Republicans to support Pickering
Source: WorldNetDaily.com; Published: March 5, 2002; Author: David Limbaugh

The GOP's Post-Pickering Strategy
Source: National Review Online; Published: March 1, 2002; Author: Byron York

Pickering Fight Shows Liberals At Their Worst
Source: Roll Call.com; Publblished: February 21, 2002; Author: Mort Kondracke

Still Pestering Pickering
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: February 19, 2002; Author: John Nowacki

Dismantling Democracy through Judicial Activism
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: February 12, 2002; Author:Tom Jipping

'A Troubling Pattern': Ideology Over Truth In Judicial Confirmations
Source: Too Good Reports; Published: February 10, 2002; Author: Paul E. Scates

Democrats Blast Bush Judicial Nominee
Source: CNSNEWS.com; Published: February 08, 2002; Susan Jones

The Next Big Fight: The first major judicial-confirmation battle of the Bush administration.
Source: National Review: Published: Feburary 6, 2002; Author:Byron York

SYMPOSIUM Q: Should the Senate Take Ideology into Account in Judicial Confirmations
Source: INSIGHT magazine; Published: February 4, 2002;
Authors:
Ralph G. Neas -- YES: The ideology of nominees for the federal judiciary matters more now than ever
Roger Pilon -- NO: Since judges apply law, not make it, the Senate's concern should be with judicial temperament

What is the Judiciary Committee Trying to Hide?
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: January 29, 2002; Author: Thomas L. Jipping

Blasting Conservative Judges: Liberals Launch Their Campaign
Source: cnsnews.com; Published: January 24 2002; Matt Pyeatt

Judicial Confirmation Lies, Deception and Cover-up
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: December 11, 2001; Author: Thomas L. Jipping

Senator Leahy Does Not Meet His Own Standards
Source:.cnsnews.com; Published: December 07, 2001; Author: By John Nowacki

Senator Daschle Must Remove 'Leaky Leahy' From Judiciary Committee
Source: Too Good Reports; Published: December 4, 2001; Author: Rev. Louis P. Sheldon

A Disgraceful Blocking of Nominees
Source: The Wall Street Journal (ltr to ed) Published December 3, 2001

Mr. Leahy's Fuzzy Math
Source: Washington Times;Published: December 3, 2001; Author:Editorial

Sen. Patrick Leahy; Our Constitutional Conscience?
Source: Too Good Reports; Published: December 2, 2001; Author: Paul E. Scates

Judicial confirmations called significantly low
Source: Washington Times; Published: November 30, 2001; Author: Audrey Hudson

Patrick Leahy - Words Do Kill
Source: PipeBombNews.com; Published: November 29, 2001; Author: William A. Mayer

Judicial Profiling
Source: The Wall Street Journal; Published: November 27, 2001

Sen. Leahy's judicial hostages
Source: Washington Times; Published: November 21, 2001

Judges Delayed is Justice Denied
Source: CNSNews.com ; Published: November 20, 2001; Author: Thomas L. Jipping

Partisanship is Prevalent with Leahy's Judicial Confirmations
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: November 15, 2001; Author: John Nowacki

Leahy And Daschle Are Coming Face To Face With Their Own Words
Obedient Democrats
Source: CNSNEWS.com; Published October 26, 2001; Author: Thomas L. Jipping

Why is Daschle Blocking Judges needed to Try Terrorists when we Catch them?
Source: Banner of Liberty; Published: October 26, 2001; Author: Mary Mostert

Pat Leahy's Passive Aggressive Game
Source: CNSNews.com; Published: October 25, 2001; Author: John Nowacki

Operation Obstruct Justice
Source: Washington Times; Published: October 25, 2001; Author: T.L.Jipping

Daschle wins struggle over judicial nominations
Source: The Washington Times; Published: Oct 24, 2001; Author: Dave Boyer

Leahy doctrine ensures judicial gridlock
Source: Washington Times; Published October 22, 2001

Senate's judicial powergrab: Tom Jipping tracks Dems' assault on courts
Source: WorldNetDaily.com; Published: June 28, 2001; Author: Tom Jipping

Dems Will Shut Down Judicial Confirmations
Source: CNSNews.com Commentary from the Free Congress Foundation; Published: June 13, 2001;
Author: Thomas L. Jipping


1 posted on 02/28/2003 5:17:10 AM PST by Stand Watch Listen
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Stand Watch Listen
Indeed, Teddy Bare does have a grand design.


Michael M. Bates: My Side of the Swamp

2 posted on 02/28/2003 5:18:38 AM PST by mikeb704
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: mikeb704

3 posted on 02/28/2003 5:29:11 AM PST by Skel
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Stand Watch Listen
The only "grand design" Kennedy should have been working on was a car that floats.
4 posted on 02/28/2003 5:35:27 AM PST by Behind Liberal Lines
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: mikeb704
Indeed, Teddy Bare does have a grand design.

And judging from that photo, what he doesn't have is any shame, vanity, and culinary self-control.

5 posted on 02/28/2003 5:40:40 AM PST by gop_gene
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Stand Watch Listen
Thanks, SWL. Great resource. Bookmarked for further study.
6 posted on 02/28/2003 5:41:44 AM PST by Taxman
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: mikeb704
LOL!

Like your web site.
7 posted on 02/28/2003 5:42:07 AM PST by Taxman
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Stand Watch Listen
the need to win an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation with the White House.
I'd say that, politically, Kennedy is right--if they can hold together a fillibuster on all judical nominees and the Republicans blink there will be big trouble in the Republican Party.

But if the Republicans do NOT blink, the Democratic Party will be in even worse shape. Keep running those Spanish-language commercials against the anti-Estrada fillibuster! The Democrats must be forced to keep it up long enough to evicerate their reputation among hispanics.


8 posted on 02/28/2003 5:45:58 AM PST by conservatism_IS_compassion
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Taxman
Thanks!
9 posted on 02/28/2003 6:04:57 AM PST by mikeb704
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: conservatism_IS_compassion
If the Republicans fail to get Estrada through, it would embolden the Democrats and lead to huge trouble for any further Bush nominees. In such a case, I would hope (this won't happen) that Bush just throws the whole "advise and consent" clause out the window, waits for Congress to recess, and appoints about 250 judges in one afternoon. I would hope that Bush would spend another 6 years in office, and I would hope that he would not seek a single senate confirmation during all that time.

Dems want to screw the process? Goes both ways.

10 posted on 02/28/2003 6:05:00 AM PST by ClearCase_guy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: Stand Watch Listen
Thanks, Reps should prepare for the mother of all filibusters.
11 posted on 02/28/2003 6:51:25 AM PST by ScholarWarrior
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Stand Watch Listen
Ted Kennedy's grand design
12 posted on 02/28/2003 7:15:55 AM PST by SMEDLEYBUTLER
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ClearCase_guy
Article II, section 2 concludes,
The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may hapen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session.
. . . so it wouldn't work very well (I had some similar thoughts myself, and was corrected by FR's expertise net).
13 posted on 02/28/2003 7:24:37 AM PST by conservatism_IS_compassion
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson