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Bush Re-nominating Judges Previously Blocked
Thursday, 2004 December 23 - 12:06 am
I suppose this is another example of how Bush plans to "unite" us... by attempting to stuff the federal courts with extremely conservative judges. Yeah, Bush really appears eager to bring this country together... under the iron fist of his will.

Today Bush re-nominated twenty people for federal judiciary appointments, people whose appointments previously failed to reach the Senate floor for a vote.

Of those twenty, ten had been blocked by filibusters from Senate Democrats. Democrats have cited the nominees' conservative extremist positions as the reason for the filibusters. But Bush is apparently confident in the increased Republican majority in the Senate, coupled with the fact that former Minority Leader Tom Daschle lost his Senate seat after being labeled "obstructionist".

Here's the thing. The last Senate approved 204 of Bush's appointees. So there's a 90% approval rate, and a 5% filibuster rate. But apparently, the message from Bush is, "I won't be happy until you approve all of my appointees." From this I derive the Bush Compromise Equation: "90% for me is too little; 100% for me is only fair."

It's funny to watch Bush pretend that his 51% popular majority translates into a 100% rubber-stamp for his agenda. Are Democrats simply supposed to roll over and do everything Republicans want, just because they lost a few seats in the election? Did Republicans do that when Democrats controlled the White House and both houses of Congress? (No. They often used filibusters to block judiciary nominations too. Republicans seem to conveniently forget that.)

Sadly, if Bush were simply deluded about the extent of his "mandate", that would be good news compared to the probable reality: that Bush is actively trying to pander to the religious right for helping him get elected.

An observation about truly great leaders: they unite their people by finding the common ground when they can. An observation about corrupt leaders: they cater to the special interests that put them in power. Mr. Bush, this is yet another stain on your record.

Now, how's that Iraq war going? Mission accomplished?
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Posted by Ken in: politics

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