George W Bush Has Forfeited His Right to Name a Supreme Court Justice

by Mary

As Steve noted today, Diane Feinstein has decided that although she personally won't vote to confirm Alito, she does not believe there is sufficient cause to filibuster him in order to keep him off the court. Other Democrats have been indicating the same. Yet, I'd like to know, what gives them the right to betray our rights and our constitution without a fight? They know that Alito will do considerable damage to our form of government. They know that he believes the President must be deferred to whenever there is a war on (even if it is the perpetual and never-ending war of "good against evil"). Jonathan Alter gets is exactly right today when he says that we are on the verge of giving up our checks and balances forever because this man the Senate is about to confirm will castrate the Legislative branch without blinking an eye.

So I ask again, what gives these Senators (and that is all the Senators, and not just the Democrats, who swore to protect and defend the Constitution) the right to betray our constitution by confirming this man?

What will it take before our elected leaders understand that the reactionary right is playing for keeps. If our Senators give up on our constitution, what else will they betray just so they can continue to appear to be reasonable? Could they not have rallied together long enough to make Bush pay for flipping the finger at them when he signed the anti-torture bill while saying he wasn't bound by their laws and would do whatever he wanted? (Being omnipotent, he would know when to torture and when to show restraint and those lousy Senators could go jump in a lake if they object.)

Remember, our founding fathers didn't believe in imperial rulers. They didn't approve of tyranny. And they defined tyranny as when a ruler believes he is above the law.

So what deference is due a man who cheated to become President? A man who started a war on lies and then conducted it with complete and total incompetence? A man who while talking about "protecting the American people" failed miserably when Americans faced catastrophic hurricanes that devastated our country? A man who has squandered our good name by conducting a dirty and immoral war that uses torture and secret detentions? A man who has robbed our children and our grandchildren by his spendthrift ways and his ignoring the biggest threat to humankind on the horizon, namely global warming? He has proven himself to be a divisive, incompetent, and arrogant demagogue. What right does he have to name anyone to the Supreme Court for a lifetime appointment?

If you want to know what should have happened, read Liberal Oasis' analysis. There was no reason for the Democrats to be so ineffective.