A glass-half-empty resolution on judicial nominees
From the WashPost - President, Senate reach pact on judicial nominees: “The White House pledged yesterday that President Bush will not bypass the Senate in appointing federal judges for the next eight months as part of a bipartisan deal to break a seven-week impasse over votes on Bush's judicial nominees.”
In exchange for allowing votes on 25 “non-controversial” nominees, Bush agrees not to make recess appointments. I agree with NRO’s Jonathan Adler: this strikes me as a minor defeat for the White House. Yes, more Bush-nominated judges will gain the federal bench, but it seems like a capitulation to the fact that the President is supposed to have the right to shape the federal judiciary.
Eric,
ReplyDeleteI think many people are taking this the wrong way. None of the disputed nominees would accept a recess appointment anyway, so what did Bush really give up? Nothing. Still, I'd like to see the Republican senators put up a better fight for the nominees being blocked. If they took their case to the people, and granted it is hard to do right now, I think they could have success.
That being said, I think a lot of people are finding a Bush defeat where there isn't one.
Blocking judicial nominees from a up-or-down vote was a shameless subversion of the Constitution. I just feel that Bush should not have given any quarter.
ReplyDeleteEric,
ReplyDeleteI agree 100%. The R's should have gone with the nuclear option.