Well, it looks like the Republican’s “Consti-Nucle-Bryd� option went ‘FIZZ’ yesterday.
Many thanks in the form of my middle finger go to Jackass-in-Chief and serial pussy-footer, John McCain.
In case you missed it, here’s the deal:
For their part, Republicans agreed not to support an attempt to strip Democrats of their right to block votes.
Under the agreement, Democrats would pledge not to filibuster any of Bush’s future appeals court or Supreme Court nominees except in “extraordinary circumstances.”
Oh boy! Right back where we were in 2001!
Can you sense the joy within me? No? Good, cause there ain’t any.
I just wish McCain would pull his head out of his ass and realize just how the Dems see this deal. It isn’t too hard, all he had to do was have one of his staffers read the Daily Kos:
They get some judges, sure, but ultimately, we can filibuster Bush’s next Supreme Court nominee unless he picks a moderate.
Is there any special jail time attached to the crime of bitch slapping someone if they’re a Senator?
It just goes to prove that compromise makes no one happy and that it is just better to have one winner and one loser.
I’m actually not too upset simply because this makes it far more likely that Janice Rogers Brown will make it on to the US Supreme Court! I’ve been watching her for years — I was interning in Gov. Wilson’s office when Justice Brown was confirmed to the California Supreme Court — I never met her, but everyone had really really REALLY good things to say about her. The upshot is, she’s one of the best (if you read her opinions, she’s even more cool). This deal means that she (and the other nominees) will have a few years on the federal bench to build up a defensive record that will not provide anyone with any ammunition to use against them in a confirmation fight. They know darn well not to write anything too controversial in the next few years, so as not to provide any more “extraordinary circumstances” the Dems may try to invoke when Justice Brown’s Supreme Court vacancy pops up.
And really, the power to eliminate the filibuster(and willingness to exercise it) is still there, and all of Washington now realizes that the Republicans would happily have done so.
I think the tradeoff is worth it — getting Justice Brown on the US Supreme Court would be a VERY GOOD THING for RKBA enthusiasts (not to mention for the country, IMHO).
–David