Patterico's Pontifications

5/5/2006

Gang of 14 Deal Still Doing Damage

Filed under: General,Judiciary — Patterico @ 6:08 am



You folks who still think that the Gang of 14 deal was a good idea, think again.

Yes, we got Justices Roberts and Alito in. But they would have been voted in, Gang of 14 or no.

Meanwhile, we have a disaster brewing on judicial nominees in the important Circuit Courts of Appeals. The latest victim is Brett Kavanaugh.

Yesterday, Arlen Specter caved and announced that there will be a second hearing for Kavanaugh. Why? Because lying Chuck Schumer convinced Specter that there was a chance he would vote for Kavanaugh if there were a second hearing. Then Schumer marched out to the TV cameras and denounced Kavanaugh as a “partisan warrior” — a characterization that, Kathryn Lopez notes, is straight out of PFAW talking points on Kavanaugh. Kavanaugh is an extraordinarily qualified nominee, but he will never get the votes of Democrats like Clinton and Schumer because he was on Ken Starr’s team during the impeachment proceedings for Bill Clinton. A second hearing does nothing but allow them to build a case against Kavanaugh by asking him impossible questions and demanding privileged documents.

It’s payback time. And Specter is going along with it — thanks to the Gang of 14. Here’s Ed Whelan, from the above link:

Although it’s tempting to blame Specter for this delay, a committee staffer tells me that Senators Graham and DeWine—members of the Gang of 14—worked hard to persuade Specter that another hearing would ensure that Democrat members of the Gang of 14 wouldn’t support a filibuster. We’ll see. In any event, it’s far from clear that, absent a second hearing, those Democratic senators would have supported a filibuster—and there would have been a lot of value in putting them to the test.

And the Democrats will stop at nothing to get their payback — including blatant lying about Kavanaugh’s record. The eternally clueless and/or mendacious Harry Reid says that Kavanaugh’s experience “is nonexistent, basically,” adding: “I’m not sure he’s ever been in a courtroom.” Ed Whelan counters with the truth:

Kavanaugh, now 41, has a remarkable breadth of experience that few judicial nominees could match. Among other things, he has been a Supreme Court clerk (to Justice Kennedy), has devoted more than ten years to federal-government service, has served in a senior position in the executive branch, has been a partner in a major national law firm, and has argued cases in the Supreme Court and court of appeals.

Why is Reid allowed to say anything about judicial nominations? He embarrasses himself time and time again.

Things aren’t looking good on other fronts. Via Confirm Them comes a link to a summary of the current situation, prepared by (staffers for) Senator Jon Kyl. The situation is bad. And it’s not getting any better.

There is no guarantee that Republicans will have as many Senators in late 2006 as we have today. I personally believe it will be a bloodbath on Election Night 2006. We might not even control the Senate when it’s all over.

The time to strike is now. Unfortunately, the Gang of 14 deal makes that difficult, because the threat of a filibuster continues to loom over qualified candidates like Kavanaugh.

Once again, thank you very much, John McCain.

27 Responses to “Gang of 14 Deal Still Doing Damage”

  1. Hugh Hewitt vigorously defended Specter after his harebrained remarks to Bush about judicial nominees in the days following the 2004 election, stating that we need the Liberal Republican vote to get sitting judges that won’t write laws from the bench. What is the point if Specter (and those like him) pull stunts like this?

    As for McCain, he has the mark of political death in my eyes simply for the Incumbency Protection Act Campaign Finance Reform laws.

    I have a feeling McCain and Specter will have a tough battle in the primaries. Enough of the conservative base from out-of-state is so ticked at them they are looking to support their opponents.

    Paul (c169e9)

  2. I think the point to the actions of the “gang of 14” is to preserve the power to filibuster judicial nominees. I’m not sure it is in the interests of conservatives to abolish that power; it is an important power for the minority party in the Senate, and conservatives will not remain forever in the ascendant.

    I’m also not convinced that it’s about payback. Most liberals I know genuinely believe that Clinton was the target of a concerted witch hunt in which disgruntled conservatives looked everywhere they could to find dirt on him, and in which the case against him was the result of a political grudge in which the lawyers responsible found a way to twist the facts and the law in order to suit their preconcieved political purposes.

    Accept that premise for the purposes of argument for a minute, even if you disagree with it, and then ask yourself: if you thought a lawyer was twisting facts and the law to suit political ends, would you want him to become a judge?

    aphrael (e0cdc9)

  3. I think there is an alternative explanation. NRO is reporting that “14” members DeWine and Graham convinced Specter to accommodate the Dems on an expedited schedule (which he didn’t need to do) so they can save face. Everyone is convinced that Kavanaugh will be confirmed.

    Also note that the hearing is scheduled on Tuesday at 2:00 p.m. (originally 4:00 p.m.) in order to obscure the Dems’ opportunities to make it a newsworthy event.

    Big Dave (a16c30)

  4. aphrael said, “Most liberals I know genuinely believe that Clinton was the target of a concerted witch hunt…”

    Anyone, everyone, who thinks Clinton wasn’t responsible for his own misbehavior lacks the fundamental ability to grasp the relationship between cause and effect. Such persons and their opinions, no matter how “genuinely” held can only be dismissed as rubbish.

    Black Jack (d8da01)

  5. Black Jack: there’s a sizeable number of people who believe this, and a number of them are in positions of power. You can stick your head in the sand and wish they would go away, you can dismiss what they are saying as not worth of engagement … or you can engage with it.

    Which is going to result in the better overall outcome for our nation? Especially when the people who believe that take control of the reins of power again, as they inevitably will sooner or later?

    aphrael (e0cdc9)

  6. aphrael, I can’t see that mollycoddling dunderheads is going to result in anything useful for our nation. It is long past time for the deliberately gullible Left to grow up and stop pretending that Bill Clinton was anything other than a self-indulgent serial abuser of women and cheap crook, who pardoned drug dealers for cash, sold weapons secrets to the ChiComs for “campaign contributions” and turned the White House into his private motel.

    Silly attempts to attribute Clinton’s crimes to those who cried “foul” is the same sort of delusional doublethink which Cynthia McKinney tried last month to shift blame for her arrogant posturing. It doesn’t work, and those who try it come off looking juvenile.

    Now, should the Left ever wish to engage on the issues in good faith, adults are waiting.

    Black Jack (d8da01)

  7. […] Meanwhile, Patterico observes time may be running out to restore the long tradition of granting up-or-down votes to majority-supported judicial nominees: There is no guarantee that Republicans will have as many Senators in late 2006 as we have today. I personally believe it will be a bloodbath on Election Night 2006. We might not even control the Senate when it’s all over. The time to strike is now. Unfortunately, the Gang of 14 deal makes that difficult, because the threat of a filibuster continues to loom over qualified candidates like Kavanaugh. Once again, thank you very much, John McCain. […]

    Confirm Them » Some Judicious Friday Evening Notes (b78190)

  8. i will never vote for john mccain. here’s why:
    my late, great aunt was getting on in years, hard of hearing and legally blind. she bought a $5000 “certificate of deposit” from lincoln savings & loan, which was actually a junk bond. as you may recall, lincoln savings was a subsidiary of american continental corporation, run by charles keating, who bribed five senators, including mccain, for favors.
    then my aunt redeemed her junk bond before the portcullis slammed down! was she in the clear? no.
    in bankruptcy law, there’s something called “voidable preference”. american continental corporation’s estate in bankruptcy sued my virtually deaf and blind aunt to recover that $5000 which lincoln savings had bilked out of her in the first place! from her perspective, this was not unlike being raped with an american flagstick.
    since i was practicing law in california at the time (now retired and living in oregon), i ended up with the file. i wrote a letter to richard bilby, the federal judge in tucson hearing these cases, and he ultimately dismissed all the cases against the voidable preference defendants (i can’t honestly say that it was due to my letter versus just post hoc ergo propter hoc, but he’s still my kinda judge).
    so every time i hear mccain’s name, this incident is called to mind as if it were yesterday. there also seems to be some spinning/mythmaking happening with his people. it is truly unfortunate for him that his aircraft was intercepted by a surface-to-air missile in vietnam, but i don’t see how this equates to heroism. i’ve also read some things that cast doubt on the character and fitness of his wife to be first lady.
    john mccain is corrupt. this fact has been established in the public record. with about 300 million americans now, can’t we find a president who hasn’t already been bought and paid for?

    assistant devil's advocate (73d3c1)

  9. McCain’s political life is dominated by his being a member of the Keating Five. You look at it, all of McCain’s campaign reform efforts since that are him simply trying to compensate for that – to whitewash his own participation. The S&L collapse was caused by massive corruption by lawmakers, S&L’s, and “generous” appraisers, all in on the game. McCains involvement in this was despicable.

    But I’d still vote for him over a Democrat. Just look at this crazy stuff going on in California to see how bad it could get at the federal level. New laws requiring prominent transsexuals to be mentioned in history books, the State Senate voting to praise The Mayday Great American Boycott, etc.

    It is not appropriate to pick on McCain’s wife, or the heroism of his career as a pow torture victim.

    Wesson (c20d28)

  10. McCain’s political life is dominated by his being a member of the Keating Five.

    Absolutely true.

    Patterico (50c3cd)

  11. The entire gang of 14 should have been removed from congress the minute they made the deal. They are subverting the constitution and the congressional process worse than anyone in history. Actually they should all be arrested and shot, after a very short trial.

    Scrapiron (9f37aa)

  12. Patterico, I think the gang of 14 deal was good for the Republicans. It got Brown, Pryor and Owen confirmed and made it easier to confirm Roberts and Alito. Bush has gotten 235 (87%) of his nominees confirmed which is historically good. The deal didn’t make Specter the judiciary committee chairman and in my opinion he would likely have granted a second hearing in any case. There are currently 53 vacancies and Bush only has nominees for 23. If judges are so important perhaps Bush should come up with some more nominees (and preferably of Roberts-Alito rather than Meirs quality). For example Bush has yet to nominate a replacement for Roberts.

    James B. Shearer (fc887e)

  13. […] UPDATE: Patterico agrees (”Gang of 14 Deal Still Doing Damage”) — “The time to strike is now. Unfortunately, the Gang of 14 deal makes that difficult, because the threat of a filibuster continues to loom over qualified candidates like Kavanaugh.” […]

    BizzyBlog.com » DeWine Joins Arlen Specter’s Coalition of the Snookered on Kavanaugh (475ea5)

  14. @wesson:
    “it is not appropriate to pick on mccain’s wife, or the heroism of his career as a pow torture victim.”
    after what happened to my aunt (see comment #8) my view of what’s appropriate shifted. i would also ask you if you are one of the people who ragged on bill clinton’s wife, and picked apart john kerry’s war record?

    assistant devil's advocate (11871d)

  15. Patterico, since Kavanaugh was just confirmed 57-36 (after a 67-30 cloture vote) perhaps your post was a little overwrought, no? Btw Bush still has not nominated a replacement for Roberts or 26 other current vacancies in the federal courts.

    James B. Shearer (fc887e)

  16. Patterico, since Kavanaugh was just confirmed 57-36 (after a 67-30 cloture vote) perhaps your post was a little overwrought, no?

    No.

    Btw Bush still has not nominated a replacement for Roberts or 26 other current vacancies in the federal courts.

    How’s he doing with the folks he *has* nominated?

    With these gutless Republicans in charge, there’s little point in nominating anyone new. I mean, he can, and should, but nobody will get confirmed. We lose in 2006 and that’s it. We’re done.

    Patterico (50c3cd)

  17. It took three years for Kavanaugh to be confirmed.

    Patterico (50c3cd)

  18. As I noted above Bush has gotten the overwhelming majority of his nominations confirmed. I believe there are about 20 nominations pending many of whom will eventually be confirmed.

    James B. Shearer (fc887e)

  19. And many of whom will languish further because Specter doesn’t want to trigger a filibuster.

    Yes, Bush has done pretty well statistically. But some very fine people like Gonzales Estrada and Kuhl have been tossed over the side for completely illegitimate reasons.

    Patterico (50c3cd)

  20. Gonzales? Do you mean Estrada? As for Kuhl she was apparently opposed by at least one of California’s Senators. While you may not consider this a legitimate reason, I believe the Senate has traditionally felt otherwise. In any case the goal is to appoint good judges, allowing an occasional Democratic blackball should not substantially interfere with this. I doubt Kuhl and the other blocked judges were uniquely qualified.

    And why blame Specter, it is up to Frist whether to schedule votes is it not? Frist apparently felt the immigration bill was more important.

    James B. Shearer (fc887e)

  21. Ack. I must have been drunk this morning. Yes, of course, I meant Estrada.

    I blame Specter because of what I read here:

    The factor that could change the dynamic in the Senate is if Democrats choose to filibuster some nominations. Many observers don’t expect that to happen, at least with the present group of nominees. The reason is not so much that Democrats aren’t willing to filibuster but that there are some battles Republicans don’t want to fight. “I do not want to place the Senate in the position where we were a year ago this time when were having filibusters on the Democratic side and the Republican side was posing the constitutional, or nuclear option,” Specter said this week. “I want to avoid that.” One way of avoiding that is to make a deal, as apparently has been done with Kavanaugh. Another way is for Republicans simply to leave some nominees, like Myers and Haynes, in the lurch.

    I blame Specter.

    Patterico (50c3cd)

  22. Myers was reported out of committee 3/17/05. Haynes is still in committee reportedly because Graham is blocking him as a favor to McCain who opposes Haynes. Specter does not appear to be the primary problem in either case.

    James B. Shearer (fc887e)

  23. The York article was published the same day as the above post, later in the day. Did you read it? Here’s more on Myers and Haynes:

    Kavanaugh’s hearing will give Democrats a chance to talk—and talk and talk and talk—about a few of their favorite subjects. “Tuesday will be the way for them to get the following words in the paper: torture, abuse of power, illegal wiretaps,” says one Senate aide. And then Kavanaugh will move on to confirmation.

    The situation is not as encouraging for some of the other nominees. Haynes is associated with the treatment of prisoners in the war on terror, a topic Republicans aren’t interested in re-fighting this year. “I’m not sure that he will be brought up, especially before the election,” says the Senate aide. . . . And Myers has been involved in enormous fights between Democrats and the administration over issues at the Interior Department, where he worked.

    Patterico (50c3cd)

  24. Obviously Specter is not the only problem. It’s Bush, it’s Frist, it’s Republicans in general. They’re not willing to fight for good nominees.

    Btw, Bush gol-dang-well *ought* to have a good confirmation record. His party has controlled the Senate for much of his presidency.

    Patterico (50c3cd)

  25. The York article suggested the second hearing for Kavanaugh was part of a deal with the Democrats to confirm him which is consistent with what happened and rather different from your characterization of the second hearing as a brewing disaster and a cave.

    I imagine as a prosecutor you hate seeing bad guys get away with stuff but it isn’t practical to pursue every case.

    James B. Shearer (fc887e)

  26. Yes, and as I just pointed out in my previous comment, the York article was not available to me at the time I wrote the post, as it was published later in the day. (I actually didn’t see it until today.)

    If I had seen the article before writing the post, I would have been more optimistic on Kavanaugh, but still pessimistic in general.

    The article still suggests that Republican weakness on the filibuster will continue to cost us good judicial candidates.

    Patterico (50c3cd)

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