Posted on 10/11/2005 10:37:08 AM PDT by Ol' Sparky
Conservative Group Urges Bush to Withdraw Miers Nomination
By Melanie Hunter
CNSNews.com Senior Editor
October 11, 2005
(CNSNews.com) - A conservative legal group Tuesday announced it is withholding its support of Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers and called on the president to withdraw the nomination.
The Liberty Counsel said President Bush should keep his campaign promise to appoint Supreme Court justices in the mold of Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. "The only way to remedy a disastrous decision is to redo it," said Mathew Staver, president and general counsel of the group.
"I am terribly disappointed with President Bush's decision to nominate to the Supreme Court someone who operates under the radar. Bush has turned his finest hour into a political debacle that threatens to split his conservative base," said Staver.
"The reverberations from his decision to nominate Harriet Miers have political consequences, if not corrected, that will haunt the Republican Party for some time," said Staver. "I didn't litigate nonstop for five weeks for a stealth nomination.
"Nor did African-Americans and Hispanics jump party lines to join a record number of evangelicals and others in 2004 to support this President for a nomination where our only assurance is 'Trust me.' I'm not a gambling man, and I'm not about to blindly roll the dice on this nomination," Staver added.
Staver has nothing against Miers personally, he said. "My opposition has nothing to do with Ms. Miers' educational background or her lack of judicial experience," said Staver. "Ivy League schools do not make a Supreme Court Justice, nor does judicial or academic experience."
To be considered a qualified nominee, Miers must have a judicial philosophy, according to Staver. "Mere recitation of words like 'strict constructionist' is not sufficient," he said. Bush "can't expect a nominee to begin thinking about judicial philosophy after appointment to the High Court."
"Ms. Miers is 60 years of age, and yet we have no clue from her speeches or writings about her judicial philosophy. If she hasn't developed a consistent judicial philosophy by now, then how can the President ask us to blindly trust him?" Staver asked.
The Liberty Counsel is opposed to the Miers nomination for two reasons. One reason is because Bush "had a number of highly qualified candidates with proven track records and well-developed judicial philosophies," which he passed over in favor of "an invisible nominee," Staver said.
And the second reason is because choosing a nominee "who has held her views in silence for 60 years sends a wrong message to conservatives - if you want to be appointed to the federal bench, you should keep your views to yourself," Staver added.
"That's a terrible message to send to our future leaders," concluded Staver.
The ONLY way to stop the bleeding, Mr. President, is to withdraw the nomination, show the meekness and humility Miss Miers allegedly possesses, apologize to the base and appointed a known originalist to the court. If not, you can't imagine how much worse things are going to get. You will be faced with a political nightmare on level with Watergate.
Let me give you the Bush-bot response in advance of the deluge: All groups who oppose Bush are fanatical idiots and liars. They are just made because Miers is not Ivy League.
Now, if it was one or two groups, maybe. But, there is a crescendo developing here! Are you listening Mr. Bush? Do you have the guts to fight for an openly conservative pro-life nominee and originalist who places the Constitution over Stare Decisis? I'm not holding my breath.
However, if this woman and Roberts both turn out to be Souter types, then the GOP can kiss 2008 election good-bye! I believe there will be a mass exodus at that point from the liberal GOP.
It's becoming clear from all the little hints being dropped by insiders that HM will withdraw sometime this week. All I have to say (based on the other hints) is be careful what you ask for.
If President Bush wants to retain any credibility, he can't back down now. He needs show these "Real Conservatives" how irrelevant they are.
For what....not giving you a clone with a paper trail that would be defeated by the Senate?
"TRUST ME ON THIS ONE"... sorry, that does not get it. This position IS TOO CRITICAL to play trust games. And, with the entire spending, education and border situation, I am not trusting Bush on anything.
And neither are alot of other Constitutional conservatives. There is NO ROOM for error here. None.
Ah yes...and just who do you think he'll send up if Miss Miers is withdrawn? Can you say Alberto Gonzales?
Like I've said previously, there will be hell to pay for the conservatives with this White House after Miss Miers is confirmed, which she will be.
What "insiders"? This never-heard-of-before legal group?
You can take it to the bank that Bush is not going to withdraw this nomination, and Miers is not going to step down.
And, if she is voted down, if you hated Harriett Miers, you'll like Edith Clement even less.
Amen to that!
He got his blind trust from me on CFR, never again.
I'm quite demoralized. There are going to be a lot of wounds that never heal over this.
That's true. My bet is the next in line will be a pro-abortion moderate. This may be the best chance at getting a pro-lifer to the court, even if she is probably moderate on many issues.
Bush will only be as liberal as people allow him to get away with. I'm glad to see some people are tired of winking at Bush's liberal proclivities.
He is a proud man, and, if he and his nominee are humiliated, you are going to get moderate female candidates who will pass muster in the Senate, or O'Connor will stay and you'll keep getting O'Connor-type results.
http://www.lc.org/
"Mathew D. Staver, President and General Counsel of Liberty Counsel, serves as lead counsel on Liberty Counsel's litigated cases. He has argued in numerous state and federal courts across the country, including the United States Supreme Court. "
He could. I am beginning to wonder if there is anything Bush could do to alienate some of his staunchest supporters - like Robertson and Dobson.
Pride goeth before the fall.
This is just a stupid statement.
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