So Bush had the power to get Roberts/Alito but Obama can't get someone as LEFT as they were RIGHT???

[KansasVoter]

Or do people here think Kagan is as left as Roberts is right?

[AndyA]

1. Bush was a more powerful pResident, backed by a more intelligent Congress.

Bush always got what he wanted, it seems. Obama has to fight twice as hard and make 100% more concessions to get anything.

How that's possible is beyond me.

If Bush lost 1% more of his brain capacity, his bodily functions would cease. And the GOP Congress, as corrupt and hateful as they are, sure seem to be able to play the game better than the Democrats, who are supposed to be smarter.

Go figure? But yes, it would seem that Bush had powers that Obama just doesn't have. It's one of those great mysteries of the universe.

[Berry Cool]

6. You don't know how Bush always got his way?

Bush didn't always get his way. He got Cheney's way. And that is the explanation of why he "always got what he wanted." Because what he wanted was what Cheney wanted, and whatever Cheney wanted, Cheney got.

[Jennicut]

9. Cheney was bribing and threatening the entire Rethug Senate.

Anyone who disagrees with that is horribly naive. I don't want Obama to send anyone in to do that.

[BootinUp]

20. Through blackmail, cronyism, or whatever was necessary. nt.

[CTLawGuy]

26. a combination of having

a more ideological narrow majority party, an ideologically more diverse and less disciplined opposition party, and the political benefit accruing from 9/11, are the reasons Bush had been more successful at implementing radical policy.

[HughMoran]

2. I don't actually know

But I do believe that "reality has a liberal bias" and thus any fair-minded female will make decisions seen as very liberal. I'm not going to let her "professional" actions prevent me from keeping an open mind. Did you know she was an adviser to Dukakis? She's been a friend of Democrats for a long time.

[QC]

3. The Republicans might object if he were to nominate a liberal,

and we can't have that, now can we?

[BklnDem75]

4. There were more conservatives in Bush's reign

It's that simple.

[WeDidIt]

5. Liberals are outnumbered in the US 4:1, Conservatives are outnumbered 3:2

On top of that, the US prefers a moderate to conservative court by nearly 4:1.

Sad, cold, hard reality about the nation we live in is never easy to take, but there you are.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

7. It's about the Senate....

Look at what we're working with. Forty-one Senators who are automatically inclined to vote against anything the Administration proposes. And then there are a dozen or so senators who have ZERO loyalty to the administration (or the Democratic Party, for that matter) and could potentially bolt if their ass is not sufficiently smooched.

Give the Republicans credit - their party discipline allows them to do more with less.

[4lbs]

17. That's true. When Dubya was in, he had 51 guaranteed votes that would unfailingly vote for anything

he and Cheney wanted. Throw in another dozen that could be gotten with very minimal compromise.

President Obama has at most, oh, 40 guaranteed Senate votes. If he wants another 11, he's been forced to compromise a lot. If he wants 20 more (60 total), to break a filibuster, he pretty much has to totally weaken anything Progressive.

[merh]

8. He doesnt' want to try.

He doesn't like the idea of the fight. He likes the idea of being a "consensus builder" - you know, being a moderate and making everybody happy.

[Name removed]

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[jenmito]

11. Obama's a "corporate tool"???

:rofl: Then he sure made the wrong choice with Kagan who was against the ruling that considered corporations as "people"!

[Tesha]

12. Obama doesn't *WANT* someone as left as Roberts is right.

Every pick he's made for every position has shown
is that in the Obama Administration, "lefties need
not apply".

Tesha

[polichick]

15. Yes, it seems that's the case. nt

[greencharlie]

13. Kagan is to the right of Stevens... but still a solid liberal vote. nt

[Tarheel_Dem]

14. How about sending us someone to the left of Sam Brownback & Pat Roberts?

There's two liberal giants, I tell ya. Kansas? Uuuggghhh.

[lunatica]

16. What makes you think Obama wants anyone who is a Leftist?

He's a Centrist, square on the same latitude as the Clintons. He isn't trying to be nice by reaching across the aisle for bipartisanship. He's sincere about it. He likes Conservative ideas, and he wants them. He's not a Leftist or Progressive although I'm sure he wants a few people in Congress to be.

We have to stop trying to make it look as if he has to swerve Right all the time. He doesn't. And it's because he isn't a Leftist.

But I do think he has the best interest of the country while doing his job. I think he's doing what he believes the country needs. What I'm trying to say is that he's sincere and not into partisanship. He wants consensus.

He isn't getting much, but that's what he aims for.

[freddie mertz]

18. He didn't want anyone too liberal.

We have to accept that this is how it is.

[tranche]

19. Quick, let's all vote Nader in 2012. That'll teach em!

If those idiots didn't think there was no difference between Bush and Gore in 2000 this wouldn't even be an issue.

[Cronus Protagonist]

21. K&R

Yeah, no kidding.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

22. That's the most frustrating thing about this ordeal. The media always praises

far right justices but demand that Democratic presidents who make appointments must choose nominees that are "impartial" and can yield "bipartisan" agreement. Conservatives exercise "conviction". Fuck that shit! I am so sick of the double standard.

[BootinUp]

23. The main reason for this is

that there are simply not enough real liberal Senators.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

24. Yes. I understand that there aren't enough liberal Senators. But I don't

understand the media's double standards. I think we should try and get more liberal senators elected to office; however, it'll never change is the M$M sets the terms of the debate.

[Name removed]

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