Bush Bite #13 - 26 Sep 2004
Hijacking the courts
Bush will outlive Bush. Even if Kerry were to oust the Unelected One from the White House, he won't be able to undo the lasting damage Bush has done with his court appointments.
The Bushies cry foul every time the Democrats do what they can to protect the country from a far-right judicially nominee, but they never acknowledge that the Senate rubber stamped 125 appointees while blocking three (as of May 2003).
Take for example the case of Miguel Estrada. The Democrats held up his nomination for months because neither he nor the White House would provide the Senate with information regarding his legal positions. Republicans couldn't scream loud enough, and even tried to throw out the rules that allow for dissent in Senate proceedings so that the minority can't ever get in the way.
Keep in mind that the Constitution puts the Senate in charge of approving judicial nominees SO THAT THE PRESIDENT DOES NOT CONTROL THE COURTS.
As far as anyone can tell, every nominee Bush has put forward is committed to right-wing judicial activism. The next time you hear Bush talk about "activist judges," remember that the most profound and blatant case of judicial activism in our lifetimes was the unprecedented and legally shocking Supreme Court 2000 decision of BUSH VS. GORE.
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