Humiliated Bush Forced to Retreat as Moral Right Turns Its Guns On Him

[callady]

Humiliated Bush forced to retreat as moral right turns its guns on him

· Bush losing support among Christian right
· Withdrawal regarded as face-saving attempt

Julian Borger in Washington
Friday October 28, 2005
The Guardian


George Bush said one of the reasons he picked Harriet Miers for the supreme court was that he knew her so well. It says a lot about the president's current standing that the endorsement not only failed to save her: it may have helped sink her.

The withdrawal of a nominee before formal confirmation hearings have even begun is embarrassing enough. Dropping her after repeated personal endorsements, in the face of rancorous opposition from the president's own party, is an unprecedented humiliation.

<snip>

However, in the absence of clear evidence that Ms Miers had done battle against abortion, or fought on other moral battlefields, the right mutinied. The appearance of cronyism (particularly after the publication of fawning letters to Mr Bush from the nominee) only served to inflame passions. Conservatives sent an unmistakable message that they would no longer be taken for granted.

Faced with multiple scandals tainting senior Republicans, and the serious prospect of indictments against at least one top aide today, the president realised he had to consolidate his base to avoid being reduced to a lame duck three years before he is due to leave office.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1602653,00.html

[rodeodance]

1. the Brits know how to do headlines that mean something!

[henslee]

4. "an unprecedented humiliation" has a ring to it.

[mtowngman]

2. Bargaining chip

Bush has never needed to consolidate his fractured base more than now. Dumping Miers is an olive branch to the far right.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

3. Now that caught my attention!

Nice headline, pretty much sums it up.

[wtmusic]

5. I know -- let's join up with the Moral Right and dump him

then we can er, work on those other issues :silly:

[cassiepriam]

35. LOL Politics does make for strange bedfellows!

[stillcool]

6. another interesting tidbit on this;

http://www.kltv.com/Global/story.asp?S=4031809&nav=1TjD


AUSTIN, Texas A U-S Senate panel may seek testimony from a former Texas lottery official during hearings on Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers of Dallas.

Miers, who's now the White House counsel, chaired the three-person Texas Lottery commission from 1995 to 2000.

Another lottery official has claimed Miers let a company keep its contract because one of its lobbyists helped President Bush get into the National Guard in the 1960's.

...more at link...

[Cha]

7. It's the fawning,

stupid!

[MGKrebs]

8. Oh, he's a lame duck all right.

And his VP is a Lame Dick, if you will.

[Straight Shooter]

9. Conservatives screaming they won't be taken for granted?

Well, excuse me, but just WTF was Chief Justice Roberts all about, if not to appease the conservatives?

What is going on, really? Dobson was satisfied after talking with Rove, but now he isn't satisfied with Miers and is glad she's gone. So I guess bush will now nominate Priscilla Owens and the Dems, if they have what it takes, will go ballistic.

Kick him when he's down, brothers and sisters, kick him when he's down.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

20. The hard right thinks Roberts is halfway libruhl.

[Gman]

10. "unprecedented humiliation"

I like that!

[msongs]

11. psst pass it on gw bush is a coward nt

[Taxloss]

12. Guardian: White House crisis grows as Miers quits (Bush at 37%!)

George Bush's presidency hit a new low yesterday when his supreme court nominee, Harriet Miers, was forced to withdraw in the face of overwhelming resistance from within Mr Bush's own party.

The embarrassing rejection of the president's former personal lawyer and White House counsel, despite his enthusiastic backing, helped make this week probably the most miserable of his five years in office.

It could well get even worse today, when a special prosecutor is expected to conclude a 22-month investigation into a White House intelligence leak. Mr Bush's political strategist, Karl Rove, and the vice-president's chief of staff, Lewis Libby, have been implicated in the leak and risk indictment.

This week also witnessed the 2,000th American death in Iraq, and the president's personal ratings dropped to 37%. In such conditions the withdrawal of an increasingly controversial court nominee appeared aimed at stopping the haemorrhage of support among conservatives.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1602656,00.html

----------

It's already Fitzmas day in the UK.

[Straight Shooter]

13. He won't know what "miserable" means until his child dies in Iraq.

I have no pity for that bastard spawned by two bastards.

[ninkasi]

29. Nor do I, Straight Shooter...

He does not know anything about the depths of misery and grief experienced by Cindy Sheehan, and other who have had their hearts ripped from their breasts by the loss of a loved one in his miserable war of choice. He doesn't know pain the way the ones his actions have inflicted it on feel.

[Straight Shooter]

34. He doesn't know, nor does he care.

The sheltered life of an ultra-privileged piece of snot. I hit the roof when he made that smarmy comment, "Bring 'em on."

Miserable. bush will never know the true meaning of being miserable. All he knows of emotional pain is self-pity.

[Blaze Diem]

14. I predict 27%

after FITZ gets done kicking georgie's butt.

WWFD?

[ThumperDumper]

18. No...

30% would support Bush if he ate children on live TV. -JJ

.

[iamjoy]

26. Right On Thumper Dumper

15% would say it was a trick by the liberal media and Dubya didn't really eat children - the other 15% would say he needs his protein!

[ThumperDumper]

28. Protein! LOL! n/t

[man4allcats]

19. Oh how I would love to see it sink that low!

Go, Fitz!

[Mme. Defarge]

15. Gotta love the Guardian

I especially liked this line:

"The embarrassing rejection of the president's former personal lawyer and White House counsel, despite his enthusiastic backing, helped make this week probably the most miserable of his five years in office."

[opihimoimoi]

16. But but Harriet Miers was the Most qualified in the Nation

:sarcasm:

[Mme. Defarge]

17. In that case

turn out the lights, the party's over. We had a great ride for a couple of centuries. Oh, well.

[DemoTex]

23. Hi Mme. Defarge,

Welcometo DU. You have, perhaps, the best screen-name ever! I do hope the knitting is going well. Eh? Know what I mean?

[Mme. Defarge]

32. It's simply a matter of supply and demand ...

shrouds, of course.

[fob]

21. I hope the true headline had it like this..."moral" right

[Beetwasher]

22. One Of The MOST Humiliating and Embarrassing Episodes For Any Exec In

A very long time, IMO.

[swag]

24. What a weak tiny little man poor Bush is. He is so small and weak!

[Javaman]

25. So where do you think his poll numbers will be tomorrow? 33?

[iamjoy]

27. Celebration, Fear

I worry who he will nominate next if he is kissing radical right wing butt.

Janice Rodgers Brown? William Pryor?

[Miss Chybil]

30. It should say "Moralistic Right." They are not "moral." nt

[sakabatou]

31. Poor poor Mr. Bush...

:nopity:

[Erika]

33. His right wing wackos socked it to him

How sad. They knocked him back to his knees.