Harriet Miers was simply a stalking horse

[OldLeftieLawyer]

Fuckface hid behind her while the opposition (that's us, folks - not the rightwingnuts) did their pre-arranged "outrage" number. She took the fall for her beloved Fuckface, because - let's face it - Harriet is a born submissive.

I was suspicious from the start, when the "conservatives" vented their unhappiness far too quickly and in voices that all sang the same song. I think it was all choreographed, and it was simply to soften up the Democrats for the real nominee.

While I have no idea who that might be, I am certain that he or she will be to the right of Torquemada, and I worry that Reid - who gave away the store so easily in the face of the laughable "nuclear option" - will, out of relief and the false belief that we've scored some sort of victory, take a dive on the next nominee.

This one will have credentials out the old wazoo, and, on that score, will be unassailable.

I think we're about to be confronted with someone who's going to make Scalia look like a raging liberal.

[oldtime dfl_er]

1. it makes my stomach turn

to think who the next one will be.

http://www.cafepress.com/scarebaby/793803

[Sandpiper]

2. I agree, Miers was a sacrificial lamb

To pave the way for someone much worse.

The opposition to her on the right seemed way too rehearsed.

Get ready for Justice Ashcroft (or a female version of the same).

[Marie26]

3. I'm not sure they're that smart

Bush seemed to really, really want her to be the nominee. He likes appointing his buddies to top posts, so this was really no different. Sacrificing a loyal crony for a larger conservative agenda doesn't seem like his M.O. If anything, he seems to believe in cronyism more than any real religious agenda (IMO).

[Carni]

9. Remember when he appointed Kissinger to head the 911 commision?

I keep saying this on various strings on this topic..but does anyone remember when he appointed Kissinger to head the 911 committee?

It was so completely outrageous that it didn't fly (so then Keane could slip in under the radar)

Or how about the head of his propaganda office? (Was it Weinberger?
It was one of the Iran Contra guys) That was also met by horror it was so blatantly over the top...and then they slithered in some lesser plan that accomplished the same purpose.

This is textbook bushit whitehouse IMO they have pulled these types of stunts repeatedly.

[Born_A_Truman]

4. Speaking of Harry Reid

WTH is up with THIS:

"The radical right wing of the Republican Party killed the Harriet Miers nomination," said Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada, who had recommended Miers to the president. "They want a nominee with a proven record of supporting their skewed goals."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/27/AR2005102700549_pf.html

[Carni]

5. I have thought all the above since the day Miers was appointed

Probably 1/2 of the polulace couldn't mention one supreme court judge by name.

This whole issue will have no impact on them in terms of bushit's popularity or level of *power* that he can exert on the hill...they could care less. They don't even know they are supposed to care about an issue such as this.

This is all "inside the beltway" type crap and only beltway people and political junkies give a rat's behind about this supposedly *stunning withdrawal*

I think his next pick will be Brown or another female African American highly EXTREME right winged nut--they'll find someone I'm sure.

[KoKo]

6. Yes...it was very fishy... allowing the NeoCons to go after her and

getting the RW in a tizzy. It seemed coordinated to maybe get the far Right to split from NeoCons and the Traditional Conservatives yet in fact both are still together in supporting the Bushies.

Either that or Rove was so busy that the Chimp finally decided he good "really be the President," and screwed it up big time like every time when he goes off the leash.

Since the Dems were low key about her...I don't know that it would stop a filibuster, though. Reid had supported Miers (supposedly) and Schumer was on CNN this a.m. trashing the RW "Extremists" for taking down Myers
when in fact it was the Krystol NeoCons and Buchananites joined who didn't want her nomination to go through.

It just makes my head spin thinking about all the ins and outs of her nomination. Classic Flub Up or Fishy. Maybe a little of both.

Maybe they will go for Bork again. The guy who caused decades of bitterness against the Dems...finally sails through. Or Olson of 2000 Selection fame. The Dems can hold out for a woman, though.

[papau]

7. Great minds think alike -or- Old Minds Think Alike - whatever - I agree!

this was a planned failure by Rove. Looks like an Edith Hollan Jones, Samuel A. Alito Jr (if males are allowed), Janice Brown, or a Priscilla Owen will be coming up to bat!

:-)

============================================

Edith Hollan Jones, 56, a one-time Texas attorney who specialized in real estate, bankruptcy and oil, has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, and is widely considered to be one of the most ardent and vocal conservatives among the candidates (and she is a 1990 name for seat that David Souter got)to a seat left vacant by the death of Justice William J. Brennan Jr.)


Samuel A. Alito Jr., 55, is a jurist in the mold of Justice Antonin Scalia. Nicknamed "Scalito," or "little Scalia," by some lawyers, the federal appeals court judge is a frequent dissenter with a reputation for having one of the sharpest conservative minds in the country.In 1991, he was the lone dissenter in a 3rd Circuit decision striking down a Pennsylvania law's requirement that women tell their husbands before having an abortion. Alito also wrote a 1997 ruling that Jersey City officials did not violate the Constitution with a holiday display that included a creche, a menorah and secular symbols of the Christmas season.

JANICE ROGERS BROWN - Court nominated to serve on: U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
First nominated: July 25, 2003
Date of birth: May 11, 1949, in Greenville, Ala.
Education: B.A., California State University, Sacramento, 1974; J.D., UCLA Law School, 1977.
Career: Deputy legislative counsel, Legislative Counsel Bureau, 1977-1979; Deputy state attorney general, 1979-1987; Counsel, California Business, Transportation & Housing Agency, 1987-1990; legal affairs secretary to Gov. Pete Wilson, 1991-1994; associate justice, California Court of Appeal, 1994-1996; Associate Justice, California Supreme Court, 1996-present.

PRISCILLA OWEN -Court nominated to serve on: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
First nominated: May 9, 2001
Date of birth: Oct. 4, 1954 in Palacios, Texas
Education: B.A., Baylor University, 1976; J.D., Baylor University School of Law, 1977.
Career: Lawyer, Andrews & Kurth, 1978-1994. Justice, Supreme Court of Texas, 1995-present.

On edit - the AP has posted these names as possible
SAMUEL A. ALITO, 55: A strong conservative voice in his 15 years on the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is considered to be among the most liberal. He has been dubbed "Scalito" or "Scalia-lite" by some lawyers because his judicial philosophy invites comparisons to Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

-EMILIO GARZA, 58: Sits on the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and was considered for a Supreme Court seat by the first President Bush. He has become best known for his views that Roe v. Wade should be overturned and that abortion regulation should be decided by state legislatures.

-ALBERTO GONZALES, 50: U.S. attorney general and former White House counsel. Critics contend a memo he wrote on treatment of terrorism detainees helped lead to abuses like those seen at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. Conservatives have urged Bush not to nominate him.

-EDITH HOLLAN JONES, 55: Has served on the 5th Circuit since 1985. The first President Bush considered Jones for a vacancy on the Supreme Court in 1990, but nominated David H. Souter.

-J. MICHAEL LUTTIG, 51: Worked in the Justice Department during the administration of the first President Bush and has served on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va. He was a law clerk to the late Chief Justice Warren Burger from 1983-84.

-MICHAEL McCONNELL, 50: A judge on the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. He enjoys bipartisan support in the academic community. Based on his reading of the law, he opposed President Clinton's impeachment and the Supreme Court's 2000 ruling in Bush v. Gore that made George W. Bush president.

-THEODORE B. OLSON, 64: Was solicitor general, the president's top Supreme Court lawyer. He argued the Supreme Court case that gave Bush the victory in the 2000 presidential election. His wife, Barbara, a conservative commentator, was killed when terrorists crashed a jet into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001.

-LARRY D. THOMPSON, 59: Was deputy attorney general during Bush's first term, making Thompson the federal government's highest-ranking black law enforcement official. Thompson is a longtime friend of Clarence Thomas who sat next to Thomas more than a decade ago during contentious Senate hearings on Thomas' nomination to the Supreme Court.

-J. HARVIE WILKINSON III, 60: Also on the 4th Circuit. He has been consistently conservative in his rulings since being put on the court by Reagan in 1984. Wilkinson wrote the majority 4th Circuit opinion in 1996 upholding the "don't ask, don't tell" policy that barred gays serving in the military from revealing their sexual orientation.

-PRISCILLA OWEN, 50: Owen was confirmed in May for a seat on the 5th Circuit after a drawn-out Senate battle. Democrats argued that Owen let her political beliefs to color her rulings. They were particularly critical of her decisions in abortion cases involving teenagers.

-MIGUEL ESTRADA, 44: President Bush nominated Estrada, a conservative Hispanic lawyer, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit during his first term, but the nomination was thwarted by Senate Democrats who said Estrada lacked the judicial experience to serve and didn't make clear his views on abortion.

-EDITH BROWN CLEMENT, 57: On the 5th Circuit since 2001, Clement is known as a no-nonsense judge with a reputation for being tough on crime and meting out stiff sentences. Her 99-0 Senate confirmation vote to the circuit court in November 2001 suggests she has broad appeal. She was touted as a top possibility for the vacancy to which Roberts was nominated.

-JANICE ROGERS BROWN, 56: Newly confirmed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit after a bitter Senate battle and filibuster, Brown is an outspoken black Christian conservative who supports limits on abortion rights and corporate liability.

-ALICE BATCHELDER, 61: A judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Batchelder has been a reliable conservative vote on abortion, affirmative action and gun control. Bush's father appointed the former high school English teacher to the court with jurisdiction over Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.

-KAREN WILLIAMS, 54: A former trial lawyer, Williams is known as one of the most conservative judges on the nation's most conservative federal appeals court, the Richmond-based 4th Circuit. In 1999, Williams wrote the 4th Circuit opinion that would have paved the way for overturning the landmark 1966 decision in Miranda that outlines the rights read to criminal suspects. The Supreme Court voted 7-2 to let it stand.

-MAURA CORRIGAN, 57: The Michigan Supreme Court justice is a walking billboard for the conservative mantra of judicial restraint - the notion that judges should stick to interpreting the law and not making it. Her resume includes a number of firsts, among them: first woman to serve as chief assistant U.S. attorney in Detroit, first woman to serve as chief judge of the Michigan Court of Appeals.

-MAUREEN MAHONEY, 50: Often described as the female version of Chief Justice John Roberts, Mahoney, a lawyer in private practice, clerked for the late Justice William Rehnquist, served as deputy solicitor general under Kenneth Starr and has argued cases before the Supreme Court. Mahoney might upset conservatives with one of her major court wins, the landmark University of Michigan Law School case defending affirmative action.

-JOHN CORNYN, 53: A member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the first-term Texas senator has judicial experience and conservative bona fides. He served as a Texas District Court judge and spent eight years on the Texas Supreme Court. The former Texas attorney general has pushed for constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage and flag burning.

[onenote]

8. I see it a bit differently

I think Bush wanted Harriet in. He wanted a woman and his other possible choices were going to generate controversy. I don't think he anticipated the furor from the right.

I have no doubt that he'll now go with one of those more controversial women (one of the Ediths or Janice) although there is an outside chance he'll go with Alberto instead.

The problem he has created for himself is that the repubs led the charge in demanding to see Miers paper trail. If he picks Alberto, the Dems can make similar demand, citing the Miers nomination; plus Alberto's viewed as being "soft" by the fundie right wing, so he would seem unlikely.

More likely -- one of the Ediths or Janice. While there is no executive privilege issue of which I'm aware, it wouldn't surprise me if there is some paper trail that establishes that these are justices whose views are outside the mainstream. That certainly gives the Dems the cover they need to mount a filibuster, if they have the balls. Hopefully, they do.

onenote

[sendero]

10. So do I...

... I think Rove has let his boy run on autopilot since he's swamped with trying to beat the charges he's likely facing.

I think Bush** likes ass-kissers like Miers, and he thought she'd be smooth sailing.

I think the fundie right expected a slam-dunk Roe-V-Wade denouncer to take the spot, and they we actually disappointed. If it were a show, folks like Dobson wouldn't waver back and forth.

I also don't see how this helps them in any way. Bush HATES being wrong, and I think he just misunderestimated the depth to which the right thinks he owes them.