Alito's wife crying makes me angry

[JI7]

maybe if she did it in private it wouldn't be so bad. but it's just something about it that's so selfish and inconsiderate. he is doing what EVERYONE does who wants that job. HE NEEDS TO ANSWER THE FUCKING QUESTIONS.

with everything that is going on i feel like SHE HAS NO RIGHT TO CRY. not in public in order to get sympathy. other public figures have gotten FAR WORSE and none of it had to do with legitimate questioning as was the case with her husband. yet they knew they were still the lucky ones. that it's about the people who are far worse off and have far more right to shed tears for what they go through.

Hillary's husband, Teresa's husband etc had far worse thrown at them. but they didn't go out looking for sympathy for themselves. even with all the criticisms we have of Hillary. she still tried to get health care for others. and of course everyone in this forum knows about Teresa's concern for people.

[jenndar]

1. Did she cry during the hearing?

I watched some of it today, but I missed some, too, and I hadn't heard about this yet. Crazy.

[JI7]

2. i'm just catching up now

yeah, she cried during the hearings and walked out of the room they were questioning alito in.

and it just makes me angry. i tried to view it from the point of view of a wife watching her husband subject to the questioning. but i still can't justify it. he wants to be on the fucking supreme court which is for life and they made decisions which affect the lives of people.

[fedupinBushcountry]

4. IMO

she was crying because she can't take the truth when it hits her head on.

The media is spinning away on these hearings, and when the Dems get tough we are made to look like the meanies, but when the shoe is on the other foot we are made to look like whiners.

Well this time the whining is all Repub, and it is sickening. Alito IMO has answered softball questions and not answered any hardball ones. It is just fascinating how the Repubs do the answering for him and he just says yes thats true. This is so sick. :puke:

[jenndar]

6. That's bizarre, and inappropriate.

I mean, I know sometimes people can't help stuff like that, but didn't everyone pretty much see all this coming? And you are right - this isn't about one person's fate, but the fate of millions of people, and no Senator should have to hold back to save anyone's feelings.

[jillan]

7. there is a video somewhere

Don't remember which thread I saw it on.
If you don't find it, post, and I'll look harder.

on edit:
http://www.cnn.com/video/player/player.html?url=/video/politics/2006/01/11/sot.graham.alito.wife.crying.cnn

for those of you that haven't seen the actress at work.

[jillan]

3. What was that anyway???

It made me mad too.
If she knew she was going to cry, she should have left the room.
It just fits in with Alito wanting to take women back to the dark ages. The poor, fragile little woman. grrrrrr.
She is not a young woman and should know how to control her emotions. When something brings me to the point of crying, I am able to stop myself.

Part of me has to ask if it was an act to get those mean democrats to stop picking on her husband. Or maybe she should just stay home. Or better yet, go shopping for a new wardrobe.

[ginnyinWI]

5. Okay here's what happened:

Kennedy and Leahy and others were, you know, questioning Alito pretty hard trying to get him to spill some beans.

Then Lindsey Graham starts saying some really nice stuff about Alito and what a wonderful guy he is, and how he has to put up with all this crap, and thankyou so much for your sacrifice, etc.-- and that's when she starts to break down--when he was saying what a wonderful husband and father and sterling example of a man Alito was.

So yeah, she could have taken it outside, or not been so emotionally invested in the first place. She didn't have to be there at all, if you ask me.

[karynnj]

9. That she cried when Graham said nice things makes sense to me

As one who has started to get tears in my eyes when families of kids I didn't even know gave their prepared speech to their child at b'nai mitzvahs, I understand completely. She was likely very prepared to sit there when the Democrats were trying to find negatives, but just became very emotional when Graham praised her husband in such an overwhelming way.

Am I the only one here who has cried at weddings because of happiness? I'm sure she was embarrassed, but it's not a problem.

[ginnyinWI]

17. I can understand it--

the closest emotion I think, that defines it is "gratitude" for someone having sympathy or understanding. It must be a strain--but I don't think she really needed to be there throughout the whole week of hearings.

[jillan]

8. Well if you are mad about her crying, this will help

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x115118

Sorry mods if you are lurking, this thread is just too good to miss.

[WildEyedLiberal]

10. LMAO! Priceless!

:rofl:

[ProSense]

14. Good one! LOL n/t

[Island Blue]

15. Thank you so much for posting that!

:rofl: That made me laugh out loud - way to get those endorphins cranking first thing in the morning! :rofl: That was priceless!

Oh, and I think it's okay to post a DU link in here as long as we're not alerting everyone to a Kerry bashing thread. Or something like that.

[Blaukraut]

11. She shouldn't even be present

During the hearings. Someone in a GD thread remarked that you wouldn't bring your family along to a job interview, either. This is Alito's job interview. Family needs to stay out of it. I'm just glad that our senators aren't intimidated into being 'gentlemen' by her presence. I don't know what purpose Mrs. Alito's presence is supposed to serve, but if it is meant as a distraction, it has only worked on the media thus far. Then again, maybe that was the idea... what do I know.

[Island Blue]

13. That's exactly what I was thinking too.

What is the purpose of having the whole damn family sitting behind the "candidate" anyway? What purpose could their presence serve except to be a distraction to the proceedings? ("Maybe if my wife and kids sit behind me, they won't ask me tough questions.") I don't care if it's a Democratic or Republican nominee, I don't think it's appropriate.

I also thought it was odd that Mrs. Alito at first smiled when Graham said the word "bigot" and then burst into tears. Personally (and I may be wrong) I think she did a superb acting job.

[BlueIris]

12. To quote a great American: "Boo hoo, Mrs. Alito. You married that shit

on purpose."

[sandnsea]

16. Distraction from this though

thank god for small favors,



And Lindsay Graham made her cry when he came to her husband's rescue. Somebody saying something nice about her husband overwhelmed her to the point of tears, interesting.

[wisteria]

18. Cynical me says this was an orchestrated moment.

The media was ready to go with this story by 6 PM. Candy Crowley of CNN had a story on this that included clips of women defending or supporting their men that included THK's "shove it" remark and Hillary's Tammi Wynette, Stand By Your Man moment. The Repub talk shows all have their bad Dem's talking points in place and the talk show callers were expressing their indignation on cue even before the end of the hearings yesterday.

The Repubs want Alito bad, this appointment will score big with the kooky base and it also serves as a distraction from all the other scandals. It amazes me that the republicans are able to re-define us to their liking when it is necessary. Last month we were weak because we wanted to take a retreat and defeat posture in Iraq and now we are too tough and acting like bullies.
I really hate to admit this, but our Dem's seemed to have played into their hands just trying to do what they are suppose to do-ask the tough questions. One consolation, anyone with a brain has to be disgusted with the Republicans lack of questioning and their blatant follow the leader mentality.
This hearing is disgrace, IMO, why bother going on with this. This has been nothing but a farce. The Republicans have set it up so no one learns anything about Alito and he doesn't have to answer any questions.Bush has already appointed him-the king has spoken. This is nothing but a circus act for the benefit of the public. Unfortunately, it isn't very entertaining and it doesn't serve the publics interest at all.I just hope that Alito backfires on them and becomes another Harry Blackmun.
Sorry for the lengthy post, I needed to vent I guess.

[ProSense]

19. Cnyical me says it was a set up too, but

I think the circus made Alito's wife crying look extremely silly and spotlighted the Republicans' inabilty to ask questions. That's why the Spector/Kennedy confrontation seem to me the better indicator of what is actually happening. My gut feeling, since all the media pundits are being highly critical of the Democrats.


The man padded his resume:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/12/AR2006011200147.html?nav=rss_email/components


Another note/question: The House Judiciary Comm. will hear testimony on the NSA spying incident on Jan. 20. Isn't this the same day Alito reaches the full Senate?

[wisteria]

21. Good points!! n/t

[whometense]

20. Just read this over at Digby's place:

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2006_01_08_digbysblog_archive.html#113708704276622789

I know everybody loves a Nixonian Republican named Martha who cries, but would it be too much for the press to actually report the backround on this little kabuki today?

TIME wrote last night:

The always-alert Creative Response Concepts, a conservative public relations firm, sent this bulletin: "Former Alito clerk Gary Rubman witnessed Mrs. Alito leaving her husband's confirmation in tears and is available for interviews, along with other former Alito clerks who know her personally and are very upset about this development."

In case that was too much trouble for the journalists, the firm also e-mailed out a statement from the Judicial Confirmation Network calling "for the abuse to stop."

This was all spontaneous, of course. Any resemblance to Clarence Thomas' "high tech lynchings" or Lynn Cheney's "this is not a gooood man" is purely coincidental.

I think it's time for Ted Kennedy to haul some little girls who were strip searched in to testify. You wanna play? Bring it.

And it's also time for Democrats to see this as the gift it is. For once the snivellers are the Republicans, playing against type. But that means we're playing against type also. It's not often that the country sees us as "too tough." We should play like Pat Fitzgerald and say "we're just doing our jobs, ma'am. This is important business." Let Huckleberry and the boys whimper like little old ladies.

Via Talk Left's fine analysis of yesterday's hearings

There is no low too low...

[wisteria]

22. No low too low is absolutely right!! n/t

[ProSense]

23. Orrin Hatch: She's sick and tired of the mistreament of her husband

Democrats turn up heat on Alito
Nominee deflects queries on abortion, affiliations amid partisan sniping
By SCOTT SHEPARD
Cox News Service
Thursday, January 12, 2006

Washington — Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee challenged the credibility of Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito on Wednesday amid flaring tempers and partisan bickering.

Alito's wife, Martha-Ann Bomgardner, left the committee hearing room in tears after hours of sometimes bruising questions about her husband's integrity and his commitment to administer justice fairly. She returned a short time later, smiling and holding her husband's hand and reclaiming her seat behind the witness table where he has endured three days of examination by lawmakers.

"She's sick and tired of the mistreatment of her husband," Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) told reporters.

The incident came toward the end of a lengthy day of testimony by Alito in which Democrats demanded clearer explanations about his membership in a Princeton University alumni group opposed to admission practices that resulted in rising numbers of women and minority students. They also pressed him on his views about the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion nationwide.

On that question, the 55-year-old appeals court judge succeeded in avoiding making a commitment to the senators beyond his pledge to keep an "open mind" in any deliberations involving abortion. About the Princeton group, Concerned Alumni of Princeton, which he cited in an application for a Justice Department post in the Reagan administration, he said he had no recollection of his involvement with the group and repudiated racist, sexist and homophobic opinions expressed in articles in its magazine.

"They're not my views," he said. "I deplore them."


http://www.oxfordpress.com/hp/content/shared/news/nation/stories/2006/01/NATALITO0112a_5REP.html



Ah, the "I used it on my resume, but..." defense.

[wisteria]

24. Not only do the repubs speak for Alito, they now speak for his

wife.

[saracat]

25. My post in another thread regarding this.She makes me sick!

saracat (1000+ posts) Thu Jan-12-06 04:38 AM
Response to Original message
53. I am sorry Mrs Grumpy. I don't buy it. My father was a judge.
My mother was a lawyer. My mother didn't cry in public. And she had a hell of a lot more reason to cry than Mrs. Alito. She had not only the factors of my father's career to worry about( Our family was threatened by the mob and my father was beaten up) but she also had the trials of sex discrimination of her era to contend with. She lost job opportunities because she was a woman. She was made fun of and told she wasn't "feminine" She was also discriminated against frequently by women. A DA's wife told her hubby NOT to hire her as she didn't think it "appropriate "that her hubby work with a female.And later, as she began to work for the government, there were nasty political rivalries to deal with,on both her behalf and my father"s.. And my mother did NOT CRY. She got mad and she took action.And she never got mad at honest questioning or anyone holding either herself or my father to account. Mrs.Alito makes me sick and I have zero sympathy for her.

[ProSense]

26. Yeah,

they're trying to legitimize this as if they would accept every woman in America to employ this tactic.

"You know what, my husband deserves this job promotion," :cry: