Rep. Jon Kyl vows to filibuster Obama's possible Supreme Court nominees

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Rep. Jon Kyl vows to filibuster Obama's possible Supreme Court nominees
By John Amato Wednesday Nov 12, 2008 10:03am



I forgot to post this the other day, but I think it's important. Jon "nuclear option" Kyl shot off his mouth the other day to the Federalist Society and threatened to block Supreme Court nominees of Barack Obama only a few days after the election.

Jon Kyl, the second-ranking Republican in the U.S. Senate, warned president-elect Barack Obama that he would filibuster U.S. Supreme Court appointments if those nominees were too liberal.

Kyl, Arizona's junior senator, expects Obama to appoint judges in the mold of U.S Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, David Souter and Stephen Breyer. Those justices take a liberal view on cases related to social, law and order and business issues, Kyl said.

"He believes in justices that have empathy," said Kyl, speaking at a Federalist Society meeting in Phoenix. The attorneys group promotes conservative legal principles.

Kyl said if Obama goes with empathetic judges who do not base their decisions on the rule of law and legal precedents but instead the factors in each case, he would try to block those picks via filibuster.

Steve says: "Think about that. The second highest ranking Republican in the Senate, just a few days after the election, is already talking about blocking Supreme Court nominations that haven't been named, in response to Supreme Court vacancies that don't exist."

And Howie Klein ads:

...according to CNN exit polls, those who claimed that the Supreme Court was a factor in their decision in the presidential election, broke for Obama 53-45% and voters who called future Supreme Court appointments the most important factor went for Obama even more strongly-- 57 to 41%.

The more Republicans talk, the more irrelevant they become.

http://crooksandliars.com/john-amato/rep-jon-kyl-vows-filibuster-obamas-poss

[Danger Mouse]

1. Kyl can blow it out his ass.

[d_b]

2. I'm sure we can find our 60.

[Goblinmonger]

3. What a dick.

At least he's right on cue for about how long I thought it would take asshole republicans who spouted off nonsense about having a yes or no vote on all of Bush's appointments to turn into a raving lunatic hypocrite.

[MadBadger]

4. On supreme court votes, I dont think the Republicans could muster enough votes to filibuster.

I think the Democrats would take at least 4 republicans, making the threat non-existant

[dansolo]

34. I'll bet more than that

How many of them are on the record arguing against the use of filibusters to block Supreme Court nominations?

[blondeatlast]

36. Guaranteed Senator Kyl is. He was one of the most vocal proponents of the nuclear option.

do I need to add that he's as slimy as his own split tongue?

[Inuca]

5. Good luck, Jon!

:evilgrin:

By the way, in spite of the steep competition, I find Kyl one of the most abnoxious in the Senate.

[MidwestTransplant]

6. Easy tough guy. Good luck finding 40 votes.

[PBS Poll-435]

7. He is such a shit

[blondeatlast]

8. This dick is prepping for a 2012 primary run, count on it.

Sometimes I so fucking hate being from Arizona. None of our good guys are from anywhere near my Congressional district. :mad:

[ProSense]

16. He'll most likely fail to get 40 Senators, but it will

give Democrats impetus to pick up a couple more seats in 2010.

[Alexander]

27. He didn't exactly win big last time. Maybe he'll get a primary run for his Senate seat.

Kyl beat Jim Pederson by only 10 points. And Pederson wasn't a great campaigner.

[SeattleGirl]

9. Oooooh, nanny nanny boo boo, Jon!

I'm sure Obama is shaking in his shoes!

[SurfingAtWork]

10. Kyle and the other republicans should be Felating McCain for taking

The lead on the gang of 13 which prevented the use of the nuclear option. It is thanks to McCain that they're still able to mount judicial filibusters.

[Sebastian Doyle]

11. Fuck Kyl with his own rug.

Just when we thought McCrazy was Arizona's worst embarrassment, Senator Hair Club For Dillweeds has to compete for the title. :eyes:

[KamaAina]

25. He probably thinks the rug has its own vote.

Gotta wonder just what's in the glue that holds it on...

[yellowcanine]

12. Him and which other 39 Senators? I don't see Snowe, Collins, Specter and Lieberman going along with

this. They are the only remaining Republican Senators in the Northeast. (I know, TECHNICALLY Lieberman is not a Republican.) Lugar is questionable also. Lugar has to watch his back. Obama won Indiana and Lugar will be up for reelection in 2012. Kyl will be out in the cold sucking on his thumb even without one of Minnesota or Alaska.

[DefenseLawyer]

39. Lugar is safe.

We could run Jesus himself against Lugar in Indiana and Lugar would win by 10 points.

[ShadowLiberal]

43. Lieberman would almost certainly side with us, he's still a proabortion moderate liberal

Specter in my opinion may be more vulnerable to pressure from the GOP's base to filibuster if he wants to run for reelection in 2010. He only very narrowly won a primary last time against Tooney (with Bush's endorsement to). Specter needs to win the primary to even get to fight in the general election. Who knows though, a long time ago Specter was once a democrat, then he switched parties to run unopposed for the GOP nomination for state attorney general I believe it was (rather then fight in the democratic primary for it), then he won the general election. He's stayed a republican since, that was a couple of decades ago to when he switched.

[mollymongold]

13. My bets are that Obama appoints the first latina to the sc..

do Kyl and the repubs really want to be the ones who tries to block the first latina supreme court justice?

[Two Sheds]

31. Oh, baby! How beautiful would that be?

We could call them out when they blink and meekly confirm her.
or
We can lock up more Hispanic votes if they have the "courage" of their convictions.

[Hawkeye-X]

14. Fine, you can filibuster it in the Congress rathouse...

We'll just do the nuclear option that you had threatened us in the past to get your extreme right-wing fuckwit judges passed.

Simple majority rules.

Hawkeye-X

[PM Martin]

15. Already working to derail Obama before he takes office.

This is the same thing that happened to Clinton in 1992/1993.
The right wing in general is horrible, but there are no words to describe
the horrors of the US right wingers.

[Virginia Dare]

30. I think Obama will learn well from Clinton's mistakes..

and not underestimate this sleazy bunch. He'll be ready for them, and the Clintons will help arm him.

[The Stranger]

17. Wish we had a Democratic Senator that stood up for what he/she believed in like this.

But instead we're dammned with Alito and Robertson for decades.

[MadMaddie]

42. I think it's worse than that our Dems took the words of Alito

and Robertson and let them get away with not answering questions. That will never happen to a Dem nominee.

Wasn't Feinstein and Schumer the main culprits?

[maxsolomon]

18. "He believes in justices that have empathy," said Kyl

oh, the horror! empathy! can't have that in a judge.

does Kyl even know what Empathy is?

[GoesTo11]

23. So he admits that Roberts and Alito don't have empathy?

Ok. Got it.

[Chiyo-chichi]

28. God forbid! We can't have judges who have empathy

or who consider the individual circumstances of a particular case!
:sarcasm:

[AlCzervik]

19. Obstructionists! and feel free to add in whatevr the rw said when democrats

didn't like Bush's picks for the court.

[Occam Bandage]

20. If he thinks that Snowe, Spector, and Collins are going to filibuster a justice because

that justice is pro-choice, then he's nuts.

[City Lights]

21. Vile Kyl strikes again!

Bring it on, Jon!

[Az_lefty]

22. I despise Kyl more than McCain. He's nothing but a goose steppin Republican

hasn't had an original thought in his life.

[thoughtcrime1984]

24. Hell, he may not even have McCain's support. nt

[DrToast]

26. Obama should throw them for a loop and appoint Gonzalez

[Virginia Dare]

29. He doesn't even have a name yet...

what an obstructionist dickhead.

[DefenseLawyer]

32. "And I can't thank Jon Kyl enough"

"for making sure the judges I nominate get a fair hearing and an up or down vote on the floor of the United States Senate". - George W. Bush at the Jon Kyl for Senate Dinner, November 28, 2005.

"It appears my hypocrisy knows no bounds" - Doc Holliday, "Tombstone" (1993)

[DU GrovelBot]

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[backscatter712]

35. I think it's time for us to consider the nuclear option...

Better moderate your stance on judicial nominations, or we'll shove your own medicine down your throat.

[ddeclue]

37. OK is it SENATOR John Kyl?? I sure hope so

because otherwise he's an idiot... Representatives don't get to vote on Supremee Court nominees...

Doug D.

[iceman66]

38. Harry Reid could nip this in the bud easily

by requiring the Repugs to ACTUALLY FILLIBUSTER in order to block something, instead of just threatening to fillibuster.

[djg21]

40. What about the so-called "Nuclear Option"?

Now that the tables are turned, perhaps the Dems should consider changing the Senate's rules so that filibusters can be ended by majority vote.

[Unsane]

41. Good luck trying to demonize and filibuster the first latina Supreme Court Justice (Sotomayor).

Your party really is doing well with hispanic voters :sarcasm:

[Tutonic]

44. Does he realize that the bus that he's ridin on lost all four wheels

about a week ago?