Free Republic

Among the documents presented to the Senate Judiciary Committee by Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers are copies of speeches she gave more than a decade ago. In one 1993 speech before a women's group in Dallas, Miers invoked what might be called a doctrine of self-determination. Speaking about today's hot-button social issues, including abortion and church-state separation, Miers said, "The underlying theme in most of these cases is the insistence of more self-determination. And the more I think about these issues, the more self-determination makes sense." She added, "The ongoing debate continues surrounding the attempt to once again criminalize abortions...

WASHINGTON - The mystery over what Supreme Court Harriet Miers believes deepened Wednesday as conservative Republican senators grappled with phrases from a 1993 speech in which she endorsed “self determination” in matters such as abortion. In the speech, Miers also said, “Abortion clinic protestors have become synonymous with terrorists and the courts have been the refuge for the besieged.”

There has been an uproar in Washington, D.C., over the nomination of Harriet Miers by President Bush to replace Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court. Miers faces charges that she is an unknown, with no judicial background and no specific qualifications to serve on the court. There's also a charge that she may be the beneficiary of "cronyism," having served as the president's personal counsel for many years — and these are the charges being made by conservatives and Republicans! Combine those facts with the observations of some prominent Democratic senators who will also vote on her nomination —...

<p>WASHINGTON — Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers said in a speech more than a decade ago that "self-determination" should guide decisions about abortion and school prayer and that in cases where scientific facts are disputed and religious beliefs vary, "government should not act."</p>

WASHINGTON - After being roundly criticized for submitting an incomplete questionnaire to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers gets a second chance today. Her new submission, due to the committee by the end of the day, will be important in determining whether she gets confirmed. Her nomination has not generated much enthusiasm in the Senate and could be in jeopardy if senators aren't satisfied with her second batch of answers. Sen. Patrick Leahy, the ranking Democrat on the committee, said the "unprecedented" request for more answers shows both parties are skeptical about Miers. "Both Republicans and Democrats...

< /snip> Those who claim that it is only Washington eggheads and activists who are disillusioned, misunderstand and underestimate the consequences of such Washington-based problems. The current Washington Republican negativity to Mr. Bush is as a stone thrown into a lake -- it will ripple outward until it causes waves on the distant shores of the heartland. < / snip> More importantly, the president is perilously close to duplicating the estrangement his father experienced from his congressional allies when George H.W. Bush raised taxes in 1990. Just a year out from congressional elections, Republican congressmen and senators are in the...

< /snip> Mr. Viguerie, in his first public statement of opposition to the nomination, said Mr. Bush "has broken his word to his conservative base and has greatly diminished his credibility." "If the president does not quickly withdraw the nomination," Mr. Viguerie said, it will reflect "a shaky will" on his part to engage the Senate and the nation "in one of the most important debates of our lifetime." Mrs. Schlafly and Mr. Viguerie added their names to a growing list of respected conservatives who have expressed disappointment or outright disapproval of the choice of Miss Miers. None, until now,...

<p>My party, the Republican Party, has failed me and thousands of other blue-collar workers across the nation.</p> <p>Thousands, maybe millions, of us voted Republican because of the Democrats' social agenda. We have been the forgotten voters in the Republicans' dash to appease their business and influential friends. They forget who put them in office and who may not put them back in for another term.</p>

President Bush has been having more than his share of troubles lately. The economy is not quite where it should be, with unemployment offices reporting that jobless claims are at a 20-year high. Criticism of his administration's intelligence handling prior to going to war with Iraq, and even the veracity of its WMD claims, is mounting. The public is growing understandably anxious about the rising number of American casualties in Iraq, where our postwar occupation policies at times seem aimless and uncertain.All of this is well known and frequently commented upon. One group where the president is thought to enjoy...

Rush was wrong on his radio show today.