<$BlogRSDUrl$>

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

2005-07-02

Others On The Confirmation Battle

Sen. Salazar (D-CO): I look forward to very careful and full deliberations in the Senate to examine the qualifications of any eventual nominee in fulfilling the Senate’s constitutional duty to advise the President and give consent to the nomination. It is my hope that the President will follow through with his pledge to consult with the Senate to ensure the selection of a nominee that Coloradans and the nation can welcome and be confirmed with strong bipartisan support.”

Sen. Reid (D-NV): The Constitution gives the President and the Senate shared responsibility to fill this vacancy, because the President may only act with the “Advice and Consent” of the Senate. At this critical moment, the President must recognize the Senate’s constitutional role. He should give life to the Advice and Consent Clause by engaging in meaningful consultation with Senators of both political parties.

Sen. Leahy (D-VT): The stakes are high for all Americans. Consideration of Supreme Court nominations is one of the most important responsibilities of the Senate. I renew my call to the President to consult with Members of the Senate from both sides of the aisle as he makes his decision about a nominee. There is a rich history and tradition of consultation between the President and the Senate on Supreme Court nominees. I hope that the President will honor not only Justice O’Connor’s record of service, but also her judicial independence, by respecting that tradition of meaningful consultation and in finding a nominee who will unite and not further divide the Nation.

Sen. Levin (D-MI): For nearly 25 years, Justice O'Connor has been a moderating influence on a Supreme Court that has often been deeply divided. She has played a critical balancing role.” You can tell he put a lot of thought into that.

Sen. Kennedy (D-Mass): I hope President Bush will follow Ronald Reagon's example and ignore the advice and arguments of those who would prefer an ideological activist. He knew the best for the country would be someone we could all unite behind, and he chose such a person -- Sandra Day O'Connor. WARNING: actual statement many, many times longer than this (big surprise, eh?)

Sen. Clinton (D-NY): In 1981, when President Reagan was faced with a vacancy on the Supreme Court, he selected Justice O'Connor, a consensus conservative nominee who became one the Court's most respected members. The vacancy created by Justice O'Connor's retirement presents President Bush with a challenge and an opportunity to put partisanship aside and to honor the Constitution's mandate that he seek the “advice and consent” of the Senate in naming a replacement. I urge the President to take seriously the Constitution’s charge and to engage the U.S. Senate – both Republicans and Democrats – in a process of genuine consultation in order to identify and to ultimately confirm a consensus nominee.

And so it begins. First, they "establish" their right to control the nomination process by mis-characterizing the Advise and Consent Clause, and then they put ALL of the burden for an orderly process on the President's shoulders.

Tomorrow, I'll go back through the news archives and see if I can't dig up what they REALLY thought about Sandra Day O'Connor when she was nominated. I was young then, and remember very little, but I believe they left her very much alone, as she was the first female nominee. We'll see. . .
Posted by: Michael / 7/02/2005 02:42:00 AM

Weblog Commenting by HaloScan.com

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?