Posted on 07/28/2007 5:23:00 AM PDT by COUNTrecount
New York Sen. Charles E. Schumer, a powerful member of the Democratic leadership, said Friday the Senate should not confirm another U.S. Supreme Court nominee under President Bush except in extraordinary circumstances.
We should reverse the presumption of confirmation, Schumer told the American Constitution Society convention in Washington. The Supreme Court is dangerously out of balance. We cannot afford to see Justice Stevens replaced by another Roberts, or Justice Ginsburg by another Alito.
Schumers assertion comes as Democrats and liberal advocacy groups are increasingly complaining that the Supreme Court with Bushs nominees Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel A. Alito has moved quicker than expected to overturn legal precedents.
Senators were too quick to accept the nominees word that they would respect legal precedents, and too easily impressed with the charm of Roberts and the erudition of Alito, Schumer said.
There is no doubt that we were hoodwinked, said Schumer, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee and heads the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
A White House spokeswoman, Dana Perino, said Schumer's comments show "a tremendous disrespect for the Constitution" by suggesting that the Senate not confirm nominees.
"This is the kind of blind obstruction that people have come to expect from Sen. Schumer," Perino said. "He has an alarming habit of attacking people whose character and position make them unwilling or unable to respond. That is the sign of a bully. If the past is any indication, I would bet that we would see a Democratic senatorial fundraising appeal in the next few days."
Schumer voted against confirming Roberts and Alito. In Fridays speech, he said his greatest regret in the last Congress was not doing more to scuttle Alito.
Alito shouldnt have been confirmed, Schumer said. I should have done a better job. My colleagues said we didnt have the votes, but I think we should have twisted more arms and done more.
While no retirements appear imminent, Bush still could have the opportunity to fill another vacancy on the court. Yet the two oldest members Justice John Paul Stevens, 87, and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 74 are part of the court's liberal bloc and could hold off retirement until Bush leaves office in January, 2009.
Earlier this week, Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, the Judiciary Committees ranking Republican, said he was persuaded by a conversation with Justice Stephen G. Breyer, who spoke with Specter at the Aspen Institute gathering in Colorado this month, to study the decisions of the Roberts Court. The term that ended in June was notable for several rulings that reversed or chipped away at several long-standing decisions, delighting conservatives but enraging liberals.
Breyer has publicly raised concerns that conservative justices were violating stare decisis, the legal doctrine that, for the sake of stability, courts should generally leave precedents undisturbed.
It is not often in the law that so few have so quickly changed so much, Breyer said, reading his dissent from the bench in June to a 5-4 ruling that overturned school desegregation policies in two cities.
Schumer said there were four lessons to be learned from Alito and Roberts: Confirmation hearings are meaningless, a nominees record should be weighed more heavily than rhetoric, ideology matters and take the president at his word.
When a president says he wants to nominate justices in the mold of [Antonin] Scalia and [Clarence] Thomas, Schumer said, believe him.
Schumer said his greatest regret in the last Congress was not doing more to scuttle Alito.
And where is our Republican senators publically “regretting” that our Supreme Court has been “out of balance” for years?
Anyone? Bueller?
There’s no fight left in the administration or the Republican Party. Don’t know why.
Interesting that Chuckie would come out and say this....sounds to me like he’s really worried about the possibility of 2 more Bush nominations to SCOTUS, for some good reason. I wonder if he has been given a quiet “heads-up”...
Of Course the Democrats don’t want any dissenting points of view... They want to control all branches of government you know....
Freedom is irrelevant. Resistance is futile you will be assimilated.
If Schumer admits to being hoodwinked, what kind of schmendrik is he?
“Theres no fight left in the administration or the Republican Party. Dont know why.”
Because the word fight has taken on a new meaning and Americans are seeing it. The Republicans are perceived as not fighting while the Democrats “whine”.
Republicans don’t want to be seen with the President while at the same time cannot fight with the Democrats for fear they will be placed in the Presidents camp.
You want to know why 2008 election cycle started in 2006? It separated the Republicans from the Whitehouse and the RATS are using that for their investigations and their agenda.
Step 1 - Shut down the AG office
Step 2 - Fill your coffers with earmarks and illegal contributions and funding
Step 3 - Divide the opponents party
Step 4 - Subpeona everyone over nothing
Step 5 - Allege Corruption charges on weak candidates
Step 6 - Steal election in areas disenfranchised by the RATS
Wash, rinse, repeat.
Soviet model I believe except they killed opponents. For that, see Vince Foster.
This whole crap about not ever reversing precedent is crap. What about the Dred Scott decision that, had it not been reversed, would have maintained slavery? What about a decision in the 1800s that allowed involuntary sterilizations of people who were considered “mentally feeble” in order to keep the gene pool clean?
There have been many decisions of the court that, when scientific evidence and clearer heads prevailed, were reversed.
Roe v Wade was raw judicial power...but besides that, it was based on phony evidence about illegal abortions and fatalities. Additionally, the whole issue of viability has tremendously changed in the last 30 years.
The Democrats want the ability to kill their offspring....and allow plenty of illegal immigrants in so they can vote. ITs’ disgusting!
Wait a minute. Did’t Schumer, Kennedy and the rest to the Senate thugs promise no litmus tests. You mean they gave a litmus test and Alito and Roberts passed? Do tell!!
Yes he’s an idiot but he voted against Alito anyway... Chucky wants pure secular progressive ideologues on the bench... In his mind the Constitution is just an old piece of paper that needs updating to conform with the insane world that Chucky’s mind envisions.
The Dems are such partisan hacks...it is disgusting.
Shumer is a complete dolt.
They will shut down all media sources that have a dissenting view of the Secular Progressive movement... This is the begining of the Velevet Revolution...
Bush is engrossed in the war that the Terrorists waged on us and is trying to appease all sides to win a victory but the Liberals give no quarter they are playing end game.
Personally I think it is even deeper then that... They want to artifically extend their own lives... Embryonic Stem cell research, cloning, designer humans.... This is nothing short of mans attempts at playing God...its very disheartening.
Bring. It. ON!
A good fight over judges ought to be worth a dozen seats in the House.
The Supreme Court is dangerously out of balance. We cannot afford to see Justice Stevens replaced by another Roberts, or Justice Ginsburg by another Alito.
So he wants it to be his way or noway. So much hate from the Democrats goes unnoticed in the MSM, it truely amazes me.
How many more times are we to accept the obvious .... obvious, I say ... declaration of war against the united states of America???
The bwitch said just the other day ... I'm a progressive, and defined that as an early 20th century progressive.
Folks, the early party of the century was the first and most blatant attack by the socialists we had ever had.
We know that there is a real, live democrat socialist party within the democrat party.
My question, and an increasing more than I are asking ... when do we take to the streets?
Or maybe the war will/should become a life and death situation.
Patrick Henry really, really knew the stakes.
If it is 'Give me Liberty or give me death." ... How do you suppose the 'death' part of that will/would actually come about? Join the Army?
I hope I don't get banned for this, but I believe we are at war with a machine that has the power to kill us ... good men in jail, lives ruined .. mysterious deaths, the law and constitution of America used against us.
How long, good people ... how much longer?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.