O'connor and the 2005 Term

[JMHACLJ at aol.com]

In a message dated 10/27/2005 1:03:28 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
zimmermi at shu.edu writes:

There  generally comes a time when the question is asked whether a 
second-term  President has become a lameduck. The Mier's fiasco might well be the 
turning  point for President Bush. With the cloud both over the White House and Dr.  
Frist, the nuclear option seems gone. So any nominee has to be acceptable to  
some Democrats. But no one acceptable to the Democrats may be acceptable to  
the Republicans who want to distance themselves from the leadership for their  
own political interests. It is like Republican gubernatorial politics in  
California: Before the recall, no Republican who could get elected could get  
through the Republican primary and no Republican who could get through the  
primary could be elected.
Here's two cents worth, and they are mine:
 
First, the base and the President have to come to terms, and they are  
simple:  Set aside all discussion about whether Miers satisfied his  commitment to a 
certain kind of judicial candidate.  No prideful displays  of "we told you 
so-ism."  No petulance over disappointments about the  response of the base to 
his choice and his call for trust.  The  President either (a) believed that she 
did or (b) wanted others to believe that  she did.  Whether those who 
disagreed with the President over the  Miers pick are right or not, they must have 
the good graces to move forward  without playing the oaf or the bully.  The 
President, of course, can be  counted on to act the man here and to move forward 
without rancor or  spite.
 
Once the terms of the relationship are re-established, all that is required  
is for the President (again, as he sees, or for the first time on this  
nomination, as some in the base may see it) to follow up on his  commitment to 
Justices in the mold of Scalia and Thomas.  If he does this,  and if he is seen by 
the base and understood by the base to have done it, then  the base will rush 
in to him with open arms.  No lameness.  No  duckness.  Just an overwhelming 
outpouring of love and support.  
 
But to get that response, we can expect that base will insist that no  
guessing game must be forced on them regarding the choice he makes.  In  other 
words, the base will rightly insist, in return for its outpouring of  affection 
that on an Edith, an Alito, a Luttig, or another (than me) Henderson,  as in 
Karen LeCraft Henderson.  In other words, a nominee who looks, walks,  talks, 
writes, and veritably oozes Scalia-Thomas-ism.  
 
Jim Henderson
Senior Counsel
ACLJ
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