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My personal musings about anything that gets on my radar screen--heavily dominated by politics.

2005-06-25

Advise and Consent

So the Senate Democrats have written to the President to encourage him to seek their advice on any Supreme Court nominees he might be considering.

I have an idea: Have Scott McClellan announce from the podium of the White House Press Briefing Room that the President has presented to the Democrats a list of six names, from which he has instructed the Democrats to settle on two; from these two, he will make his choice for appointment to the bench. THAT fits the requirements of Advise and Consent, while at the same time preserving the President's right to Appoint.

But, more importantly, this sets the stage for the public relations battle that is bound to come. It seems that, now that Prisilla Owens and Janice Rogers Brown have been confirmed, the case for an "extraordinary" circumstance that would apply to all six of his choices crumbles rather dramatically. That accomplished, the President could concentrate on exposing the fraud that the Democrats arguments have become, having shown an extraordinary--and, I might add, extra-Constitutional--willingness to consult.

That could also set the predicate for the President to claim the bad faith of the Dems, and then go ahead and appoint whomever he chooses, with full expectation in the right of nominees to get a fair up-or-down vote. Which, of course, means the Constitutional Option.

I look forward to this confirmation battle, if for no other reason than to see the full political operation at work . . .assuming the White House rolls out its political operation. Said operation was weak prior to the election, has been weak on Social Security, has been weak on John Bolton, was largely weak with regards to the circuit court nominees. I guess maybe I'm just waiting to see if the White House still HAS a political operation. I'm taking some heart in Karl Rove's comments, and moreso from the defense of his speech by George Pataki and Mitt Romney. Perhaps the Republicans do still have some fight left in them.
Posted by: Michael / 6/25/2005 01:33:00 AM

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