Bush blows it. (How can you say that, Fyodor? You don't know anything about the woman. EXACTLY, I say. Plus, Bush can't read minds either.)

And thanks for institutionalizing the two distaff seats concept, you moron.

But at least it's not Gonzales.

His second Supreme Court nominee appears to be another enigma wrapped in Repansycan skin. She does not have a clearly conservative record and therefore must be opposed by all men of good conscience. Send a message to BushMonkey and your senators, both R and D. The Democrasses will put up a slightly tougher fight than they did for Roberts, but all but the most rabid will soon realize Miers is the best they could have hoped for from a "conservative" administration and may very well turn out to be one of them.

I can't wait for Anne Coulter to eviscerate this pick.

(Thanks to NRO for the heads up.)


Bench Memos
ALL EYES ON THE COURTS
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Now It Makes Sense...It's Getting Us Ready for Bork[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 08:53 AM]
A reader e-mails:
Don't worry, it's all just a Rovian strategy to pick someone who has little apparent qualifications so the Dems can spend all their capital attacking her. Eventually, Bush will give up and she won't be confirmed. Then, he announces his TRUE pick, and the public runs out of patience for the dems trying to defeat two in a row. Eh? Eh?

What Will the Christian Coalition Say?[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 08:50 AM]
From White House release on Miers: " From 1995 until 2000, Ms. Miers served as Chairwoman of the Texas Lottery Commission."

I Suppose It Is Worth Pointing Out[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 08:32 AM]
That Miers played a role in selecting John Roberts. That could be a good sign. Though I suppose the jury's out on that, too.

Amen to that.

Miers Profile[Jonathan Adler 10/03 08:26 AM]
From the Post

Early Reax[Jonathan Adler 10/03 08:25 AM]
The folks at ConfirmThem.com do not seem very happy. See here, and here. One interesting tidbit on ConfirmThem: Miers gave a $1,000 contribution to Al Gore in 1988.

WTF?

Re: Miers[Matthew J. Franck 10/03 08:15 AM]
ContraJonathan Adler, I have always maintained that presidents deserve no particular deference from the Senate when it comes to judicial nominations. They are always like to get that deference from their own party's senators, or most of them anyway. But institutionally and constitutionally, there is no persuasive rationale for such deference. Presidents already have an edge, thanks to the Constitution, in the fact that the Senate has no one to consider for a vacancy until a president names someone. From that point on, the independent, de novo judgment of the Senate is called for.This is why, once again, I renew my call for hearings in which the views of the nominee are closely scrutinized — including her views on cases the Court has decided in the past, whether they are likely to be reconsidered as precedents or not. Where's that list of Chuck Schumer's questions again?

Garnett on Miers[Jonathan Adler 10/03 08:14 AM]
Notre Dame law professor, and occasional Bench Poster Rick Garnett, praised the Miers choice in this morning's Associated Press story.
"Harriet Miers, like Justice O'Connor, has been a trailblazer and a pioneer," said Rick Garnett, a law professor at Notre Dame and former law clerk to the late Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist. "Like Justice O'Connor, Ms. Miers has broken through barriers in the law, serving as a leader and role model, and impressing everyone with her decency and her sharp intellect. She would be a worthy and appropriate successor to Justice O'Connor, and would carry to the court a commitment to constitutionalism, judicial restraint, and the rule of law." I have great respect for Rick and am inclined to trust his judgment. If likes the pick, that is definitely something to keep in mind.

Cornyn on Miers[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 08:09 AM]
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and former Texas Supreme Court justice, made the following statement regarding the nomination of Harriet Ellan Miers, 60, to the Supreme Court of the United States:

“The President will soon announce his nominee to replace Justice Sandra Day O’Connor on the Supreme Court of the United States: Harriet Miers, currently serving as White House Counsel. As he did with Judge John G. Roberts, Jr., the President has chosen an outstanding nominee for our nation’s highest court. The Senate should consider this nomination in both a thorough and expedient manner.
“Harriet Miers is a brilliant legal mind. She is a woman of outstanding character who clearly understands what it means to follow the law. She is deeply committed to public service, and has a distinguished history of professional achievement. It is clear that her past experiences have well prepared her for the honor of serving our country as a Supreme Court Justice. I strongly support her nomination.
“It is important that we put aside partisanship, and that the Senate fulfill its constitutional responsibility of advice and consent. This fine nominee must be treated with civility and respect, not as a political pawn. I hope that we in the Senate can move forward in a manner worthy of the American people.”

Miers and Recusal[Jonathan Adler 10/03 08:06 AM]
As I understand the requirements, she would only have to recuse herself from matters that she herself worked on. I would not expect her to have to recuse herself for matters that were handled in the White House before she became White House counsel.

Miers[Jonathan Adler 10/03 08:05 AM]
Here is the White House announcement from when she was named White House counsel. She's an accomplished lawyer, but her record hardly seems to match that of Judge Roberts (whose could?), or even of some of the others mentioned as potential nominees.

Miers[Jonathan Adler 10/03 08:04 AM]
I have always maintained that the President deserves substantial deference in the selection of judicial nominees — and this is no different. I see no basis for opposing his choice of White House counsel Harriett Miers to replace Justice O'Connor. But I will also say that I do not understand the choice. Yes she will be supported by the business community, and she will likely provoke little Democratic opposition. But she will do nothing to energize an increasingly disillusioned base. The left likes to recite a litany of 5-4 decisions that could be overturned were O'Connor replaced with a more conservative nominee. Yet there is another litany of 5-4 decisions that are at risk should Miers be less conservative than O'Connor. This makes the pick extremely important — and the pick of Miers does not inspire confidence. For those who want to know more, here's a profile.

Did They Know Who They Were Sending Their Talking Points To?[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:59 AM]
From the White House on Miers: "Throughout her career, she has been very active in the legal community and has blazed a trail for other women to follow."

Off Course, Earlier than Thursday[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:53 AM]
David Frum dark horsed Miers. He went back to her last week here.

You Know, I Saw This Coming Thursday[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:51 AM]
During the White House swearing in ceremony I noticed that Miers was mentioned twice and got a little worried. I was swooning at the time, so made it a joke though.

The No-Judicial Experience Thing[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:45 AM]
The White House is sending out talking points on Miers in which they point out:

10 out of the 34 Justices appointed since 1933, including the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist and the late Justice Byron White, were appointed from positions within the President’s Administration. The late Chief Justice William Rehnquist was appointed in 1971 from his position as Assistant Attorney General. The late Justice Byron White was appointed in 1962 from his position as Deputy Attorney General. Neither had prior judicial experience.

In Case You Were Not Believing Yet[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:35 AM] I just got something from the White House press office on Miers, so it's the real deal.

Recusals[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:33 AM]
Wouldn't she have to sit out partial-birth and Hamden?

Miers[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:30 AM]
likes Daylight Savings. I'm giving you what I've got:
Hello, this is Harriet Miers. I am Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy at the White House, and I am delighted to be here to answer your questions this Friday afternoon. This is always a great weekend because we will all get an extra hour of sleep Saturday night. And given all that is going on, I have to say, we here at the White House are looking forward to that extra hour!

Miers on the Wire[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:15 AM]
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush has chosen Harriet Miers, White
House counsel and a loyal member of the president's inner circle,
to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme
Court, a senior administration official said Monday.

Harriet Miers[Kathryn Jean Lopez 10/03 07:11 AM]
is what AP is reporting.
"Ugh" was my initial reaction.

Amen to that, Sister.