Supreme Court Justice David Souter has announced he will retire at the end of the current term. The biggest mistake John Sununu ever made was vouching that Souter would be a "home run" for conservatives. Now, we'll get an out liberal as opposed to a stealth one. Is it Harold Koh's lucky day? Gah.
Open-borders majority.
Whether Obama or McCain becomes president, I think we can look forward to more of this open-borders activism on the Supreme Court. La Raza, the ACLU, and AILA are high-fiving each other today over the ruling in Dada v. Mukasey (opinion here): The marriage, you'll not be surprised to learn, was a sham.
Order in the court.
The judicial debate will heat up this morning on two fronts: At 10am, McCain addresses the subject at Wake Forest University. Minutes later, GOP Sen. John Cornyn will speak on the Senate floor. Sen. Cornyn "will note that the simple fact thus far during President Bush’s final two years in office is that there have...
Read MoreVictory.
The Supreme Court gives us more good news this morning: Indiana's voter ID law has been upheld. Half of the states have passed similar laws. The race-mongers and open borders lobby will be in an uproar. CQ summarizes: You may recall that the woman who challenged the voter ID law in Indiana was, um, fraudulently...
Read MoreClarence Thomas speaks.
Update: Justice Thomas met with members of the new media tonight. La Shawn Barber, among several right-leaning bloggers, was there. *** Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas endured ad hominem attacks and character assassination attempts to an extent that few other public figures in American life have ever endured. His new book, "My Grandfather's Son," was...
Read MoreUpdate: The Left gloats.
Update: There are lots of folks monitoring left-wing blog comments sections for hate. But none top the editorial remark of the bloggers at Wonkette, who must be jealous of all the attention that the Daily Kos has gotten lately: Oh, but of course, they're just joking. They're always just joking. They're Wonkette. They're a joke....
Read MoreDems play the "dupe" card. Plus: A Bobby Byrd flashback and a reminder of the SCOTUS hearing circus.
Sen. Charles Schumer plays the "dupe" card. Yes, you can question his competency now. He admits it--he's an idiot: As penance for the Democrats' self-admitted stupidity, Schumer is now threatening to snuff any new confirmations of Bush high court nominees. Via Politico:
Summer of speculation.
Tom Goldstein of SCOTUSblog looks into his crystal ball and compiles a (not so) short list of potential Dem Supreme Court justice picks. He believes the initial appointment would go to a woman, probably a minority, and offers a second list for second/third-seat picks. Goldstein's bottom line: Supreme Court justice Deval "Quota King" Patrick? Scary,...
Read MoreIf any of you followed my work at the Seattle Times, you know how closely I covered the battle against government racial preferences in Washington state. You may remember that Washington passed Initiative 200 to ban government racial preferences in public hiring and education. Despite massive establishment opposition (led by my then-publisher), the measure was...
Read MoreDecisions, decisions, decisions: Builders prevail in endangered species lawsuit; Bush wins on faith-based initiatives;...
A bunch of Supreme Court decisions coming down today... Allah's watching: Breaking: SCOTUS says schools can censor “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” (plus there's a decision in the $54 million lost pants case filed by a crazy judge against D.C. dry cleaners.) So's SCOTUSBlog: Wires reporting on a business win in an environmental case... The Supreme...
Read MoreRebuffed by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the NYTimes puts out a desperate editorial this morning asking someone, anyone--paging Nancy Pelosi!--to help protect them from accountability for protecting illegal leakers and reporters accused of tipping off terrorist charities: The "right" the paper claims is neither absolute nor iron-clad (see Branzburg v. Hayes). As for the "great...
Read MoreI noted the NYTimes' attempt this weekend to seek protection from Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg for two accused blabbermouth reporters, whom the feds believe tipped off two Muslim charities fronting for terror. Well, wonders never cease. The Times reports this afternoon that the court rebuffed the leak-dependent paper: The United States Supreme Court refused today...
Read MoreSalim Hamdan, Osama's driver: Why is this man smiling? ***latest update 1120am Eastern...opinions have been posted...flashback: A jihadi gets his day in court...*** ***update: breaking...1014am Eastern...Ruling is delivered...5-3..."Bush overstepped authority"...Lyle Denniston at SCOTUS Blog: "The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that Congress did not take away the Court's authority to rule on the military commissions'...
Read MoreLyle Deniston at SCOTUSblog reports this morning: The Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear the appeal of Jose Padilla, a U.S. citizen held for more than three years as an "enemy combatant." The Court, however, declined to dismiss the case as moot, as the Bush Administration had urged. Only three Justices voted to hear...
Read More***update - Alito passes the committee on a party-line vote - 10-8*** The Dems are gearing up on a party-line vote against SCOTUS nominee Samuel Alito. Here's the latest from AP: Been watching a bit of the Senate Judiciary Committee bloviatio
Nebraska's Ben Nelson announces his vote for SCOTUS nominee Sam Alito. Via Reuters: Let's see how many MSM outlets will lovingly call him a "maverick." Or is that label only reserved for
***scroll for updates...1030am EDT appearance with GOP Sens...1110am Schumer exploits Rosa Parks...gross...video at The Political Teen*** Via Breitbart/AP, we have a nominee: Samuel A. Alito, Jr. White House will make official announcement at 8am EDT. Details from USNews: Nicknamed "Scalito" for views resembling those of conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, Samuel Alito Jr. is...
Read MoreFox News reporting tonight that the White House will announce its SCOTUS pick tomorrow. Washington Post, A1 for Monday: Real Clear Politics has a round-up of SCOTUS vacancy news (see right sidebar). SCOTUS Blog looks at front-runners. Reuters/WaPo on Alito and Luttig. The Prowler hears it will be Judge Samuel Alito. So does Erick at...
Read MoreWhat a relief. Sad, pensive, what-a-waste relief. Not happy-joy-joy relief. First Breitbart/AP dispatch 858am EDT: Exit strategy hinged on refusal to release privileged White House documents. (Ed Morrissey and Charles Krauthammer called it.) Whatever. We know the real reasons. Now, onto a candidate that conservatives can be proud of, okay? National Review Online has a...
Read MoreAnkle Biting Pundits has a statistical analysis of senatorial bloviation and a recap of yesterday's SCOTUS nomination hearing. Excerpt:
The SCOTUS nomination hearings for John Roberts begin today. This will not surprise you: Here's a handy SCOTUS vocabulary guide. 10 likely questions senators will ask. Five more questions for John Roberts. Patrick Ruffini's SCOTUS wire is here. Stay tuned to Confirm Them and Bench Memos throughout the day. Track back if you'll be liveblogging...
Read MoreWashington's gearing up for SCOTUS nominee John Roberts' hearings on Tuesday. A few handy links: - Bush nominates Roberts to fill Rehnquist's shoes. - The wires have a "guide to the John Roberts hearings," with brief biographical info, Senate Judiciary Committee tidbits, and the "Michael Jackson connection." - WaPo analysis declares "Roberts Hearings Likely to...
Read MoreIn Opinion Journal this morning, Manuel Miranda nails loony NARAL for its inexcusable attack ad against SCOTUS nominee John Roberts: The ladies who gave Plato's "noble lie" new uses in the hearings of Clarence Thomas are at it again. NARAL is using the image of the abortion clinic bombing by Eric Rudolph to suggest that...
Read MoreTime and again, Washington Post Style reporter Robin Givhan hides behind fashion snarking and culture reporting to savage conservatives. She did it with Katherine Harris and Dick Cheney and John Bolton--and I'm sure you can remember many more examples of partisan mockery. Well, today's conservative-bashing Style commentary sinks to the lowest low. The piece, "An...
Read MoreSo, last night during the SCOTUS press conference, you may have noticed the facial expressions of President Bush and John Roberts' wife. Glenn Reynolds did. So did the readers at Daily Kos. Why the faces? Because John Roberts' adorable little son decided to break dance during the momentous event. Dirty Harry has the hilarious photos....
Read MoreOn the left, the NYTimes editorial board warns that if it doesn't get a Sandra Day O'Connor clone, we will all end up breathing dirty air, working in salt mines, and handing over our children to do slave labor! Mark Coffey reacts to the NYT's editorial here. Meanwhile, Manuel Miranda, who launches a SCOTUS column...
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