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October 03, 2005
Miers isn't so bad
There has been great disappointment in the surprise Miers pick for Supreme Court. Social conservatives in particular have been harshest, such as this Pat Buchanan rant and Powerline's reaction. SCOTUSblog.com decried Miers as a Bush crony, which may well be the worst the Democrats can muster. Bush is testing my faith that he can surround himself with smart people. Beyond that, I have two reactions:
(1) The move was to appeal to the business base of the Republican party, the part of the base that does the financing. Social conservatives won one on Roberts and lost one here. Indeed, CNBC was generally positive, and the US Chamber wasted no time putting out a positive endorsement. The court lacks a jurist with a good business background, and Miers's presence might help generate more much-needed decisions like State Farm, which capped punitive damages.
(2) The failure to pick a better judge with more judicial experience reflects the sea change created by the 22 Democrat nays to Roberts and the Democrats' shameless attacks during the Bork and Thomas confirmation hearings. Now the chief qualification for the court appears to be not having a paper trail rather than having lengthy experience as a fair and principled judge. Expect more mealy appointments going forward, from Democrats too. That said, if Miers gets a 98-0 vote, Bush will have wasted a good opportunity to go even further right.
Posted by adrianjo at October 3, 2005 10:06 PM