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Bush aide likely high court nominee
LOS ANGELES TIMES ^ | 1/31/02 | DAVID G. SAVAGE

Posted on 12/31/2002 6:39:08 AM PST by Afronaut

Edited on 07/06/2004 6:38:33 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]

WASHINGTON -- White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales, the soft- spoken son of migrant farm workers, has emerged as the overwhelming favorite for a Supreme Court nomination in the months ahead, a move that would give President Bush a historic and politically powerful chance to name the first Latino to the nation's highest court.


(Excerpt) Read more at nj.com ...


TOPICS: Activism/Chapters; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: itsrinonotrhino; rhino; rhinoisananimal; supremecourt; whitehouse
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Oh well...
1 posted on 12/31/2002 6:39:09 AM PST by Afronaut
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To: Afronaut
Let's stick with original titles. Also, LA Times and Washington Post material must be excerpted. You have been here long enough to know that. Thank you.
2 posted on 12/31/2002 6:43:09 AM PST by Admin Moderator
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To: Afronaut
"The process could repeat itself. "He has a huge lead over everyone else," one administration official said of Gonzales.

If Bush names Gonzales to replace ailing Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, a prospect that is becoming more likely, conservatives worry that the president will shift the high court to the left, not the right, on key issues such as affirmative action and abortion.

3 posted on 12/31/2002 6:45:27 AM PST by Afronaut
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To: Afronaut
If Bush names Gonzales to replace ailing Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, a prospect that is becoming more likely, conservatives worry that the president will shift the high court to the left, not the right, on key issues such as affirmative action and abortion.

Two of the major reasons why the GOP gets destroyed by suburban women and moderates in elections are because of vitriol in these areas. Maybe by exercising some pragmatism instead of doing the spittle spraying screams, it will easier to back out of some of the more liberal positions by electing Republicans instead of handing votes to Dems (who will demagogue the issues and expand the programs).

4 posted on 12/31/2002 6:54:46 AM PST by Chancellor Palpatine
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To: Chancellor Palpatine
You mean we should bring in liberals in order to pander to those people who don't vote for us anyway? Are you working for the DNC?
5 posted on 12/31/2002 6:56:21 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: AppyPappy
Gonzales is not a liberal. He voted against parental notification. This will set off another firestorm on FR, of course. However, when George W. Bush ran for office, he said over and over again that he would have no abortion litmus test. Roe vs Wade is not going to be overturned - not by this President or any other. That's just reality. Gonzales is very strong in other areas that are important to the President. The one-issue abortion voters probably didn't vote for him in the first place since he stated early on he would have no abortion litmus test on his judges. The Bush-haters will have a field day with this but most Americans will understand and welcome the first Latino on the bench. Gonzales is very conservative on a lot of issues. I have to go...I know the flames will come swiftly....but it's New Year's Eve and some things just have to get done. Happy New Year!!
6 posted on 12/31/2002 7:06:34 AM PST by Wait4Truth
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To: AppyPappy
Paid by the DNC. I've got Hillary's # programmed into my cell phone.
7 posted on 12/31/2002 7:09:40 AM PST by Chancellor Palpatine
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To: Wait4Truth
Roe vs Wade is not going to be overturned - not by this President or any other. That's just reality.

Neither was slavery.

Exactly HOW is he a conservative? Is he a strong conservative like John Paul Stevens?

8 posted on 12/31/2002 7:10:13 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: Afronaut; MissAmericanPie; FITZ; Spiff; gubamyster; RnMomof7; sarcasm; Sabertooth; c-b 1; ...
Full Text (Detroit News)

Lott clouds U-M lawsuit
His resignation may alter Bush stance on affirmative action

By Jodi S. Cohen / The Detroit News

WASHINGTON -- The Trent Lott affair has complicated President Bush's decision whether to intervene in the U.S. Supreme Court's review of the University of Michigan's affirmative-action admissions policies, experts say.

If the Bush administration decides to oppose affirmative action, it must file a so-called Friend of the Court or amicus brief by Jan. 16.

Judging by past performance, most experts would have expected the administration to side with opponents of affirmative action. But the Senate majority leader's resignation after a lengthy national flap over apparently pro-segregation remarks may have changed that equation.

The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in late March on two lawsuits opposing U-M's affirmative-action policies. The court will decide whether a racially diverse student body is a legally acceptable reason for colleges and universities to give a boost to African-American, Hispanic and Native American applicants. Its decision could affect colleges and universities nationwide.

A brief from the administration would carry considerable force -- the weight of the U.S. Department of Justice and the extensive law enforcement and financial powers of the executive branch.

Solicitor General Ted Olson, who represents the president before the Supreme Court, is reportedly eager for the administration to take a stand against U-M's policies. But Bush's political advisers, and White House counsel Alberto Gonzales, worry that an anti-affirmative action message would alienate Hispanic and African-American voters, who the Republican Party has worked to court over the years.


9 posted on 12/31/2002 7:21:32 AM PST by madfly
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To: Wait4Truth; AppyPappy; Chancellor Palpatine; TheSpottedOwl; junta; kstewskis; archy; ...
ping
10 posted on 12/31/2002 7:27:04 AM PST by madfly
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To: Wait4Truth
"Gonzales is very conservative on a lot of issues"
Rhino.

Bush has defined himself enought for me this year.

11 posted on 12/31/2002 7:28:09 AM PST by Afronaut
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To: Wait4Truth
tell me again why 'most Americans will understand and welcome the first Latino on the bench." Because he is hispanic? so what. Only ethnic and race hustlers care about that. Bush could appoint a Martian for all I care, as long as it's a conservative Martian.
12 posted on 12/31/2002 7:28:34 AM PST by Texas_Jarhead
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To: madfly
Still waiting on the Bushbots to show us how this nominee is a "conservative".

"'e said I transgressed a law. That's good enough for me with old Dinsey. 'e didn't want to nail me head to the floor. I 'ad to insist".

13 posted on 12/31/2002 7:28:56 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: Chancellor Palpatine
Oh yeah, of course your right, incremental backward steps are the way to go. Retreat! Retreat from conservatism while there is still time!! Win at all costs, especially by ditching your principles.

Many Bush hangers on, hanging by their finger nails for the one and only express reason that he can stack the court with conservatives are obviously in for a long empty fall. No worry though, they can still find reasons to excuse him, like you just did.
14 posted on 12/31/2002 7:33:05 AM PST by MissAmericanPie
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To: AppyPappy
He's a strict constructionist. Even the ONE CASE that one-issue conservatives use to castigate Gonzales, a parental notification case in Texas, is an example of where he interpeted the law instead of writing a new one.

Gonzales would be a terrific Justice, and I hope Bush nominates him when the time comes.

15 posted on 12/31/2002 7:34:46 AM PST by Dog Gone
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To: Dog Gone
Exactly how is he a "conservative"?
16 posted on 12/31/2002 7:36:35 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: Dog Gone
He's a strict constructionist. Even the ONE CASE that one-issue conservatives use to castigate Gonzales, a parental notification case in Texas, is an example of where he interpeted the law instead of writing a new one.

The Bush-haters only want the "interpreted" when it suits their aims. A "strict constructionist", which "true" conservatives always say they want, is not acceptable if it does not fit in with their demands. While running for the presidency, George W. Bush stated over and over again that he would appoint "strict constructionists"...he is holding to his word, as I expected. Go, Gonzales!

17 posted on 12/31/2002 7:43:03 AM PST by Wait4Truth
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To: Dog Gone
Gonzales would be a terrific Justice, and I hope Bush nominates him when the time comes.

My sentiments exactly. Would be nice to have someone else on the Supreme Court that is a strict "Constitutionalist" in addition to the several judges on there now. Don't want Supreme Court justices or any other judges "making" the law instead of interpreting the law whether it be liberal or conservative.

Have noticed over the years that when judges "interpret" instead of "make" laws, rulings come down in favor of conservatives the vast majority of the time. It seems that some conservatives haven't figured that out yet or refuse to acknowledge -- better to push one's agenda than recognize reality.

18 posted on 12/31/2002 7:45:11 AM PST by PhiKapMom
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To: Wait4Truth
Exactly how is he a "conservative"?
19 posted on 12/31/2002 7:46:00 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: PhiKapMom
Exactly how is he a "conservative"?
20 posted on 12/31/2002 7:46:19 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: AppyPappy
Gonzales is the one who personally interviews and screens all of Bush's judicial nominations. Do you have a problem with his recommendations?

Gonzales is the one who crafted and announced the policy that the White House would no longer rely on the ABA's recommendations for judicial appointments.

A strict constructionist IS a conservative. Have you read his opinions?

21 posted on 12/31/2002 7:49:31 AM PST by Dog Gone
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To: Dog Gone
You are dancing around the question. How is he a "conservative"?
22 posted on 12/31/2002 7:51:12 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: Dog Gone
A strict constructionist IS a conservative.

Notice how this somehow gets lost when you only have one issue? Suddenly, the anti-Bushies want judges to re-write the law and become the activist judges the conservatives claim to hate.

23 posted on 12/31/2002 7:51:58 AM PST by Wait4Truth
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To: AppyPappy
Well, why don't you define what a conservative is for us, since you don't seem to agree with my definition as it pertains to judicial appointments.
24 posted on 12/31/2002 7:53:26 AM PST by Dog Gone
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To: AppyPappy
Are you not reading the replies? He is a STRICT CONSTRUCTIONIST, which means he interprets the law as written, rather than making things up from imagined auras and penumbras and such.

The case in Texas regarding parental notification was a case of interpreting correctly what the Texas legislature had, however unintentionally, written.

I am always hearing from the Bush-haters about how they are only being consistent. Apparently consistency only applies when criticizing the President, and does not extend to looking at judicial standards.

25 posted on 12/31/2002 7:54:07 AM PST by Miss Marple
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To: AppyPappy
Roe vs Wade is not going to be overturned - not by this President or any other. That's just reality.

Neither was slavery.

Slavery was ended by Congress and the President, as it should have been. Roe v. Wade should likewise be undone by legislative action. Beware trying to combat judicial activism with more judicial activism. Better to discredit the concept by not using it at all.

26 posted on 12/31/2002 7:54:55 AM PST by dirtboy
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To: Wait4Truth
What's his stand on School Choice?
What's his stand on gun rights?
What's his stand on immigration?
What's his stand on gays in the military?
What's his stand on Affirmative Action?

He can be a liberal constructionist depending on how he interprets the law.

27 posted on 12/31/2002 7:55:09 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: Wait4Truth
Amen.
28 posted on 12/31/2002 7:55:13 AM PST by Dog Gone
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To: MissAmericanPie
"Many Bush hangers on, hanging by their finger nails for the one and only express reason that he can stack the court with conservatives are obviously in for a long empty fall. No worry though, they can still find reasons to excuse him, like you just did."

This is a potential SC nominee that even a PRESIDENT HILLIARY! could live with.

After all - it fits in with her topsy-turvy, wacko view of the role of parents in society. You know, like a minor needs parental permission to obtain an aspirin from a school nurse, but not to go to the local PP abortuary to kill her child.

Yes, Hilliary! could support that.

29 posted on 12/31/2002 7:55:34 AM PST by KeyBored
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To: Miss Marple
You are also dancing around the question. What is the difference between him and a liberal constructionist?
30 posted on 12/31/2002 7:55:52 AM PST by AppyPappy
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Comment #31 Removed by Moderator

To: KeyBored
Obviously there is only one thing to be said, Tancredo for President 2004.
32 posted on 12/31/2002 7:59:46 AM PST by MissAmericanPie
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To: Wait4Truth
This will set off another firestorm on FR, of course. However, when George W. Bush ran for office, he said over and over again that he would have no abortion litmus test. Roe vs Wade is not going to be overturned - not by this President or any other.

Why no litmus test!? Why!!!? The leftists and liberals have a pro-abortion litmus test for all their nominees, but for some reason the conservatives are too stupid to have the same. One would think that a principled conservative would only support a nominee who doesn't think that that pureeing a baby and sucking it into a sink is a cool thing. Grisly murder is grisly murder and a litmus test should always be applied.

And if we're not attempting to overturn the demented and unconstitutional Roe v. Wade, then what the hell good are the Republican Party, the Republican majority in the House and Senate, and the Republican President and Vice President in the White House!!? More pork for our side!? Screw that.

The Republican Party, every 4 years at the national convention, reaffirms as a plank of its platform - its very core mission statement - the desire to overturn Roe v. Wade. Yet you say that they shouldn't even try, that the effort should be abandoned, that Republicans should only pay lip service to the goal but to, in reality, cease being the party that respects the sanctity of human life because that is more pragmatic.

You want to dehumanize it and call it an "issue" - as in "one-issue abortion voter". Well, those babies - those human beings whose hearts beat, whose brains function - are being murdered at a rate of 1.3 million per year. They're not just "issues" - they are defenseless, innocent human beings who are being slaughtered - sacrificed on the altar of convenience and lifestyle preservation.

You RINOs need to go find another party. Call it the Conservatives Who Think Abortion Is Just Dandy Party or something. Whatever - but you're not Republicans.

33 posted on 12/31/2002 8:00:21 AM PST by Spiff
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To: KeyBored
After all - it fits in with her topsy-turvy, wacko view of the role of parents in society.

Blame the Texas legislature for the law in question, not the judge. It isn't a judge's proper role to overturn a bad law that is still in alignment with the Texas Constitution - or do you believe that judicial activism is bad, unless your pet cause is at stake? That is what Bork was referring to when he wrote about the Tempting of America - the temptation to throw off legal restraints in pursuit of an agenda.

34 posted on 12/31/2002 8:02:03 AM PST by dirtboy
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To: AppyPappy
No, I am not dancing around. A liberal constructionist would use the opportunity to re-write the law to suit his preferred outcome, even if there were no justification other than feelings of what's "fair." (Rather like the New Jersey Supreme Court and their wholesale overriding of New Jersey election law because they desired to let the Rats have a new candidate.)

I must say that you are being willfully obtuse. There are at least 5 replies explaining strict constructionism to you, but you keep changing the discussion...going from "how is he conservative" to "what's the difference between a strict constructinist vs. a liberal constructionist?"

It seems awfully much like you are trying to avoid saying you were wrong.

35 posted on 12/31/2002 8:03:42 AM PST by Miss Marple
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To: Miss Marple
Are you not reading the replies? He is a STRICT CONSTRUCTIONIST, which means he interprets the law as written, rather than making things up from imagined auras and penumbras and such.

Some of the folks here are just asking for evidence. We can't look this guy up on acuratings.com :)

36 posted on 12/31/2002 8:04:02 AM PST by CanisMajor2002
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To: Spiff
Pro-choice "conservatives" are not conservatives. They are merely Party Members. Party uber alles. They turn with the wind. They are the first to roll over for the liberals if they think it "helps" the Party.

The Bushbots are a funny lot. If Bush says "yes", they all agree 100%. If he changes his mind and says "No", they agree to that 100% too.

37 posted on 12/31/2002 8:04:40 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: Wait4Truth
" most Americans will understand and welcome the first Latino on the bench"

Since "diversity" is so much more valuable than human life. < /sarcasm >

38 posted on 12/31/2002 8:05:53 AM PST by sweetliberty
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To: Miss Marple
What's his stand on Hate Crime Laws?
What's his stand on Campaign Finance Reform?
What's his stand on Right To Work Laws?

I'm hearing crickets here. If he's going to be on the SC, we need to know these things.

39 posted on 12/31/2002 8:06:53 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: sweetliberty
I think we are just supposed to "trust" the White House. I agree with Reagan. Trust but verify.
40 posted on 12/31/2002 8:07:48 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: AppyPappy
Pro-choice "conservatives" are not conservatives. They are merely Party Members. Party uber alles.

Nice try, but no stogie. I could slur you the same way, Hank, by saying that pro-judicial activism "conservatives" are no conservatives at all. Reality, as usual, is far more complicated than you or I acknowledge here. You can point at the Texas case decided by Gonzales and scream that he's pro-abort - yet should he engage in judicial activism to overturn a law BASED UPON HIS PERSONAL VIEWS? That is the road to judicial tyranny, IMO.

So why don't you turn down the inane Bushbot rhetoric and back up your position with facts and reason instead of slurs and emotions.

41 posted on 12/31/2002 8:08:16 AM PST by dirtboy
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To: madfly
"Lott clouds U-M lawsuit His resignation may alter Bush stance on affirmative action"

Whatever happened to just doing the right thing because it is the right thing to do? Anybody whose convictions are modified by the rise and fall of somebody else's political star must not have had true convictions to begin with. There are many things in life worth more than political expediency.

42 posted on 12/31/2002 8:09:22 AM PST by sweetliberty
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To: dirtboy
Still hearing crickets about his "conservatism".

yet should he engage in judicial activism to overturn a law BASED UPON HIS PERSONAL VIEWS?

Q: Has he ever voted to overturn a law? Hmmm.......?

43 posted on 12/31/2002 8:10:51 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: AppyPappy
What's his stand on Hate Crime Laws?
What's his stand on Campaign Finance Reform?
What's his stand on Right To Work Laws?

I'm hearing crickets here. If he's going to be on the SC, we need to know these things.

No, we don't. You ask those things of candidates for the Legislative and Executive Branches, as they create laws. But since he might be a judicial nominee, I simply want to hear that he will impartially and impersonally interpret the law and rule according to the law, NOT HIS OWN PERSONAL POSITIONS ON THE ISSUES. You're succumbing to activist temptation, Hank.

44 posted on 12/31/2002 8:10:52 AM PST by dirtboy
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To: AppyPappy
How is he a "conservative"?

He eats bran, you should try it...

45 posted on 12/31/2002 8:11:21 AM PST by mac_truck
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To: AppyPappy
Q: Has he ever voted to overturn a law? Hmmm.......?

I'm sure there will be such information forthcoming, one way or the other, about his judicial background in Texas. Trying to make a point this early in a debate about a dearth of information is pretty asinine...

46 posted on 12/31/2002 8:11:59 AM PST by dirtboy
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To: Afronaut

 

MOMENT OF TRUTH
GOP MAJORITY

END OF THE 'BULL' OR END OF THE MATADOR

Appoint strict constructionist pro-life Judges. Without Clinton slick speak of what 'is strict constructionist' is.

There is no more 'Dashhole' to blame. The buck stops with President Bush.

47 posted on 12/31/2002 8:14:20 AM PST by ex-snook
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To: dirtboy
NOT HIS OWN PERSONAL POSITIONS ON THE ISSUES.

How else will we decide whether he is a conservative? He could be a liberal constructionist for all you know. He's going to be dealing with the Constitution alone. That's not a very strict set of laws. I want to know whether he thinks the Constitution guarantees us the right to own guns. Or the right to Life. Or the right to school choice. Or the right to work. Or the right to free speech without being arrested for "hate". I don't think that is too much to ask of OUR nominee.

48 posted on 12/31/2002 8:14:44 AM PST by AppyPappy
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To: AppyPappy
Q: Has he ever voted to overturn a law? Hmmm.......?

Would that be a plus or a minus in your view?

49 posted on 12/31/2002 8:15:03 AM PST by Dog Gone
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To: AppyPappy
Is re-writing law to fit your agenda wrong whether or not it's a conservative or liberal judge? Yes or no?
50 posted on 12/31/2002 8:15:24 AM PST by Wait4Truth
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