Originally Posted By FaMulan abc7 la just broke in with the announcement, I'm looking for other details.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan >>President Bush on Thursday accepted the withdrawal of Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers, according to a statement from the White House. In the statement, Miers said her nomination presented a "burden for the White House."<< www.cnn.com
Originally Posted By FaMulan Yeah, because the Senate Judiciary Committe wanted more documentation of her work ethic and performance and the White House felt releasing documents would compromise the ability of any president to get confidential legal counsel. Think Bush shoulda thought of that *before* he nominated his personal attorney with no judicial record to speak of?
Originally Posted By FaMulan <a href="http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20051017122209990006&ncid=NWS00010000000001" target="_blank">http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/new s/article.adp?id=20051017122209990006&ncid=NWS00010000000001</a> <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9837151/" target="_blank">http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/98 37151/</a> <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/10/27/miers.nominations/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITI CS/10/27/miers.nominations/index.html</a>
Originally Posted By StillThePassHolder This fiasco should never have happened in the first place. Her nomination was a complete bungle by the Bush Administration. In the history of Supreme Court nominations, there has never been anyone less qualified. An absolute botch job. Her orchestrated withdrawal at least finally ends this disaster.
Originally Posted By Darkbeer Here is President Bush's statement, as released by the White House... >>Today, I have reluctantly accepted Harriet Miers decision to withdraw her nomination to the Supreme Court of the United States. I nominated Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court because of her extraordinary legal experience, her character, and her conservative judicial philosophy. Throughout her career, she has gained the respect and admiration of her fellow attorneys. She has earned a reputation for fairness and total integrity. She has been a leader and a pioneer in the American legal profession. She has worked in important positions in state and local government and in the bar. And for the last five years, she has served with distinction and honor in critical positions in the Executive Branch. I understand and share her concern, however, about the current state of the Supreme Court confirmation process. It is clear that senators would not be satisfied until they gained access to internal documents concerning advice provided during her tenure at the White House disclosures that would undermine a president's ability to receive candid counsel. Harriet Miers' decision demonstrates her deep respect for this essential aspect of the constitutional separation of powers and confirms my deep respect and admiration for her. I am grateful for Harriet Miers' friendship and devotion to our country. And I am honored that she will continue to serve our nation as White House Counsel. My responsibility to fill this vacancy remains. I will do so in a timely manner. <<
Originally Posted By Darkbeer And here is a link to the letter Ms. Miers wrote to the President, withdrawing from the nomination. <a href="http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1027051miers1.html" target="_blank">http://www.thesmokinggun.com/a rchive/1027051miers1.html</a>
Originally Posted By StillThePassHolder Bush's statement, is, of course, a flat-out joke. Placing blame on senators who want more information is unfortunately far too typical of the man. He nominated a completely unqualified individual. The senators were just doing their job. Reiterating Miers' alleged "extraordinary legal experience, her character, and her conservative judicial philosophy" just magnifies Bush's ineptitude on this nomination. If she had any of those things, there wouldn't be this withdrawal. I include her character because she should have had the widsom to say no in the first place. However, her fealty to Bush, a crush on the man it seems, prevented her from doing so. The replacement nominee ought to be interesting, because there will be at least two ways to analyze it. One, this will be the person who came in second to Miers (one can reasonably assume she came in second to John Roberts), so imagine the next person's qualifications, or lack thereof. I halfway expect a call from Bush any time now. Second, more realistically, the next nominee ought to actually have some appropriate legal experience and so the question will be, why didn't the replacement get it in the first place? This process, among other things, has turned into a monumental waste of valuable time.
Originally Posted By StillThePassHolder "She has been a leader and a pioneer in the American legal profession." Utter b.s. So why the hell had no one heard of her until all this happened?
Originally Posted By TomSawyer It's a good thing she didn't get confirmed. Sounds like she's just aping the president's talking points about executive privilege, which isn't exactly preserving the independence of the three branches of government. Why can't this president be honest about anything? Why can't he just be a straight talker instead of trying to hide behind executive privilege and spin?
Originally Posted By DlandDug Look, she withdrew. It's over. Why chide puff pieces about departing nominees?
Originally Posted By StillThePassHolder "Why can't this president be honest about anything? Why can't he just be a straight talker instead of trying to hide behind executive privilege and spin?" To be fair, presidents from both parties invoke executive privilege almost routinely, often to the frustration of those seeking the information. Here, though, what compounds the frustration is that not once on five years or so have we ever heard Bush say he made a mistake about something. This nomination was wrong from the start, completely inexplicable.
Originally Posted By DlandDug >>...not once on five years or so have we ever heard Bush say he made a mistake about something.<< He did accept responsibility for the Katrin aftermath mess...
Originally Posted By StillThePassHolder "Look, she withdrew. It's over. Why chide puff pieces about departing nominees?" Sorry we didn't check with you first, as usual. Thing is, this one is so bad it deserves all the criticism it gets.
Originally Posted By DlandDug All I am saying is that everything that could have been said about this nominee has been said. Parsing what are, essentially, p.r. releases looks kind of... desperate?
Originally Posted By StillThePassHolder "Parsing what are, essentially, p.r. releases looks kind of... desperate?" I'm beginning to think you either don't understand the magnitude of this mistake or your reaction when defending the undefendable of your party is to lash out and try to minimize. This never should have happened in the first place. This was a horrible decision. Whether or not party loyalists want to admit it, Bush is in a deep slump with his constituents right now. Trying to deflect blame for this one onto senators just doing their jobs is pathetic. It would be refreshing if just once Bush would say that upon reflection, this nominee wasn't the way to go. I'd even settle for Miers saying something along those lines. But no, we get more of how it isn't Bush's fault, it's those darn democrats and turncoat republicans. Reprehensible.
Originally Posted By TomSawyer Why are you trying to stifle the conversation, DlandDug? Bush is still in office, the Miers nomination was a disaster for him, and her withdrawal letter showed how firmly entrenched she was in his pocket. There's still a lot to discuss about this - the reason for the nomination (and the shrewd move by Harry Reid that led to it), the use of executive privilege to hide her real opinions, the timing of the withdrawal and the timing of a new nomination, etc.
Originally Posted By Darkbeer >>"She has been a leader and a pioneer in the American legal profession."<< Lets see, from the Nomination speech... >>Over the course of a distinguished legal career, Harriet has earned the respect and admiration of her fellow attorneys. She has a record of achievement in the law, as well as experience as an elected member of the Dallas City Council. She served at high levels of both state and federal government. Before state and federal courts, she has tried cases, and argued appeals that covered a broad range of matters. She's been a leader in the American Bar Association, and has been recognized by the National Law Journal as one of the most powerful attorneys in America. Harriet's greatest inspiration was her mother, who taught her the difference between right and wrong, and instilled in Harriet the conviction that she could do anything she set her mind to. Inspired by that confidence, Harriet became a pioneer in the field of law, breaking down barriers to women that remained even after a generation -- remained a generation after President Reagan appointed Justice O'Connor to the Supreme Court. Harriet was the first woman to be hired at one of Dallas's top law firms, the first woman to become President of that firm, the first woman to lead a large law firm in the state of Texas. Harriet also became the first woman president of the Dallas Bar Association, and the first woman elected president of the State Bar of Texas. In recognition of her achievements paving the way for women lawyers, Harriet's colleagues in Texas have honored her with numerous awards, most recently the Sandra Day O'Connor award for professional excellence. << And Senator Reid said... >>I like Harriet Miers. As White House Counsel, she has worked with me in a courteous and professional manner. I am also impressed with the fact that she was a trailblazer for women as managing partner of a major Dallas law firm and as the first woman president of the Texas Bar Association. In my view, the Supreme Court would benefit from the addition of a justice who has real experience as a practicing lawyer. The current justices have all been chosen from the lower federal courts. A nominee with relevant non-judicial experience would bring a different and useful perspective to the Court. << Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales said.. >>“I have worked with her for many years and have seen firsthand her legal acumen and know that she will be a credit to the court and this nation. She has risen to the very top of the legal profession, earning the respect of all who know her. Ms. Miers would bring to the Court her brilliance, dedication, and her commitment to the rule of law and equal access to justice for all.â€<< Doesn't sound like b.s. to me.....
Originally Posted By DlandDug It has been clear from the moment that Miers submitted an incomplete report to the Senate that this nomination was a non-starter. Now, it has been withdrawn. Anyone who wished to linger over this is more than welcome. I just don't see the value in it.
