A Boneheaded Supreme Court Fued

From the Boston Globe (Free registration required)

Progress for America, your blind faith scares the shit out of me. I don’t care if you agree with every goddamn decision Bush has ever made-- well, okay, I think you’re morons if you do, but that’s not the point-- even if you do agree with him, that kind of unquestioning faith in your leadership is terrifying beyond words. Can’t you think for yourself? Or has the fear of gay marraige wrung every last bit of sense out of your brains?

And on the other end, Moveon, what the hell are you thinking? Since the filibuster issue, the Republicans have been accusing democrats of being obstuctionist out of spite. Disturbingly, they appeared to be right. Not only that, but what do you hope to accomplish by opposing ANYONE he puts forward? You can’t stop him from picking someone , and by preemptively opposing whoever he chooses all you’re doing is making it less likely that your campaign will force him to pick a moderate if Roberts falls through. I’m sure you can televise some angry rants on “Americas Funniest Home Videos” without paying a cent, and you won’t be any less effective. Just give the 18 million to an HIV charity, or something, instead of wasting it on political wanking.

Feud. Fuck. :smack:

I hadn’t realized that MoveOn had the power to filibuster. You wacky Americans and your circus-like politics. :smiley:

I received an e-mail…yesterday? Two days ago? from MoveOn regarding John Roberts. I was extremely disappointed with a lack of rational thought or coherent arguments as to why they opposed this particular nominee. Reading between the lines, I heard “fuck Bush!!!” and I wish I could expect more from an organization that wishes to become a powerful lobbying group.

huh…lemmie see if I can find it. Mods is this ok? I don’t really think their e-mail is copyrighted.

It does seem knee jerk.
I cannot make up my mind about this guy, so I am waiting…perhaps more will be revealed, for good or ill.

And the shrillness on both sides prevents any type of progress. :rolleyes:

The Republicans seem disappointed there has not been much reaction to Roberts’ nomination, and Plamegate is resurfacing as the #! story. I am reminded of that scene from Grapes of Wrath, where the Okies are enjoying a Saturday night dance at the migrant camp, when some local thugs infiltrate with the intent of causing a fight. But when the sheriff arrives on cue to put down the riot, there is none, the thugs having been sandbagged without incident. All the ads on TV seem to be sponsored by Republicans, spoiling for a fight over an “up or down vote” for Roberts. I’ve got news for you Pubbies; you are going to get what you wished for, with little objection from the Dems.

Meanwhile, Karl Rove’s neck is still in the noose…

I hate jumping to legal conclusions and then having to go back and reword them.

While it is true that MoveOn’s e-mail is, de facto, copyrighted, I do not believe it would object to the e-mail’s republication since the spreading of its message is the entire goal of the e-mail.

I have an idea! Let’s just all take it for granted that both of these groups have spent all this money promoting their points of view. I will then take that $36 million of their hands, and everyone will be happy.

What are you going to do with all those hands?

He can make a stunning necklace with all the fingers.

How many hands does $36 milllion buy? How much do you think I could get for mine?

The only way it could be sillier is if their IT guy had forgotten to do the global cut-and-paste replacement of $NOMINEE_NAME before sending out the e-mail. :rolleyes:

I’m wholly convinced it’s knee-jerk “Bush picked him, so he must be Eeeevil.” crap.

Both sides were so geared up for a fight, that one became inevitable. It’s a damded shame we’re playing into their hands so readily.

If what MoveOn alleges is true, then I’m not happy with the pick. But honestly, did anyone have slightest hope that Bush would pick a moderate? In what universe?

I agree. The Bush Administration has done a masterful job of presenting their agenda in a context of political theater; it’s frustrating to watch the Democratic leadership simply playing their appointed roles.

It seems to me the only way to beat these guys is to recognize the theatrical angle, and change the way the script works. In the GD thread, I suggested that the smartest thing the Dems could do is to recognize that there’s no way the nomination won’t become a confirmation, and therefore to turn the tables and expedite the process in whatever ways they can. Prominent D on the Senate floor: “I move that we start hearings immediately, limit them to four hours, and have an up-or-down confirmation vote the same day.” Another D: “Seconded.” Or whatever the parliamentary procedure would be, to get the guy through as fast as possible.

Zip, zop, the script is ripped to shreds. :slight_smile:

The guy’s a done deal anyway. What’s the point of dragging things out? It’d be worth it just to see whether Bush is able to pretend to be pleased at the speed with which his nominee was confirmed while hiding his irritation at having a convenient political distraction from his growing scandals suddenly removed.

Just a few months ago, the GOP was trying to convince us that tort reform was necessary because trial lawyers and their costly lawsuits were ruining America. Now, they’re ready to vote for John Roberts, who spent most of his career as a trial lawyer.

That’d be brilliant! Oh, wait, that’s why the dems won’t do it.

The Democratic Party’s motto: “Never blow a chance to blow a chance.”

Yeah, but he worked on THEIR side, defending Evil Big Business from Lazy Workers Who Just Want To Rip Off The Man. :wink:

Cervaise, that is an excellent plan. I wish they’d follow it. Not that Roberts is my idea of the perfect Justice but he’s a shoo-in unless one of the skeletons in his closet turns out to be of Natalee Holloway. Get it over with.