USA TODAY International Edition
Why ‘trust me’ didn’t cut it
The Miers debacle provides plenty of lessons for President Bush
Cal Thomas is a conservative columnist. Bob Beckel is a liberal Democratic strategist. But as longtime friends, they can often ' nd common ground on issues that lawmakers in Washington cannot.
Today: The controversy surrounding the nomination of White House counsel Harriet Miers to serve as associate justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. On Thursday, Miers withdrew her nomination.
Bob: Cal, President Bush should have seen this coming. He tied himself in so many knots over the Miers nomination that Houdini would have had a hard time escaping. For someone of Bush’s political experience, this one was bizarre. Not only did he split his conservative base, but he was forced to lean on Senate Democrats to salvage the nomination. Anyone with an ounce of political savvy knew this dog wouldn’t hunt. What gives?
Cal: Social conservatives, especially, have been tired of Republican presidents saying, “ Trust me.” In God they trust. Bush and future presidents will have to prove that their nominees to the Supreme Court are trustworthy. We were told everything about Miers except what she believed and why. The president should have known he had a tough sell here. And no one was buying.
Bob: It’s pretty bad when Bush can’t establish trust on either side of the aisle.
Cal: Not on the court, where conservatives have been burned time and again. This seat will either ful @ ll a 40- year longing by conservatives for a majority that will stick to the Constitution, or produce a disaster with another judge making up law to suit the mood of certain elites, opinion polls and liberal editorial page writers. Conservatives didn’t support this nominee — and won’t support the next nominee — on the word of a president, be it a president they voted for or voted against.
Bob: The White House also made a fatal D aw — in an effort to save Miers — by putting her strong Christian faith forward as a reason to support her. Wasn’t this the same White House that went ballistic when my side just mentioned Chief Justice John Roberts’ religious views? You knew her supportwas thin when the best endorsement she could get was from her local preacher and a few egocentric Christian right wing pols like James Dobson. When these folks are at your side and you’re still sinking with the right wing of the party, it’s time to bail out. But the White House hopefully learned its lesson about using religion at convenient times. Beyond bad taste, it’s bad politically.
Cal: I totally agree. The administration and Miers’ supporters tried to have it both ways. They told people — w ink, wink — t hat she goes to church like you and believes the Bible. From that we were supposed to conclude she’d vote “ right” on abortion and other social issues. With the next nominee, let’s hope the administration will get back on script. The Roberts nomination was a @ ne template for howthe process should unfold.
Bob: Cal, you know George Bush and Cal Thomas have spoken to him on occasion. You think I’m too hard on him at times, and maybe I am. But you assure me he is an honest man. When he said Miers was the most quali @ ed person in the country to sit on the high court, was he being naïve or untruthful? And what are we to think about the next nominee? Will he or she, then, be the second- most quali @ ed?
Cal: I think that pronouncement was typical of the hyperbole we often get in Washington. It’s like when a senator gets up on the D oor and speaks of a colleague as “ my good friend,” when you know he despises the other guy. I don’t believe even Miers thought she was more quali @ ed than some of those often- mentioned conservative judges and legal scholars who have been universally hailed by conservatives. Now, perhaps we’ll see the president go to the A- list of conservatives with unquestionable credentials, à la Judge Roberts.
Bob: This is where things will get dangerous for my side. Remember that this nominee will be replacing Sandra Day O’Connor, who was surely more moderate than the Dobsons of the world cared for. I hope the president will resist the urge to throw red meat to the rightwing — say, another ( Antonin) Scalia or ( Clarence) Thomas — instead of nominating someone who speaks for all Americans.
Well, Bob, this is why we have elections. President Bush was re-elected with the full understanding of the American people that he is a conservative. He made no secret that he would nominate justices — much to your chagrin — in the likeness of Scalia and Thomas. Conservatives were frustrated during this Miers @ asco because they thought they were being sold a bill of goods. They want to win the ideological battle with liberals. They don’t want candidates who are blank slates. They want people who have intellectual @ re power and a track record of standing up for what they believe. Now, the president can ful @ ll that campaign promise with this next nominee.
Bob: Contrary to some of my liberal friends, I think we should have the ideological
battle. I
think the country
would rise up
against the nomination of a zealot
like Thomas. This
is a centrist country much more in
line with an
O’Connor- type
pragmatist than a
Scalia. Miers
didn’t have a chance because she’s not the type of person conservatives had in mind to @ ght that battle. And she didn’t help her cause with my side when she said that George Bush was the smartest person she knew. Talk about poor judgment! Sorry, couldn’t resist.
Cal: Conservatives believe their ideas are better than liberal ideas. And it’s a @ ght that we need not duck. The left has much to defend for what it has done to the moral, cultural, economic and foreign policy @ ber of this country. The debate over ideological control of the Supreme Court is a perfect place to focus on our agreements and disagreements. Nowthat Miers is out of the way, let’s have that debate.
Bob: Be careful what you wish for, Cal. If Bush thinks the Miers withdrawal gives Bob Beckel him a green light to lurch to the far right, he’ll have another thing coming. And he’s in no position politically to ramrod a nominee through a Senate that he just blamed for deep- sixing this nominee. He needs to tread lightly, Cal.
Cal: He did that last time and look where it got him. If the president ful @ lls his promise to name solid conservatives to the court, he’ll be just @ ne. One thing I think we can agree on is that, whoever the nominee, the president can’t expect to push through someone with a blank slate. We have a right to knowwhatwe’re getting on a lifetime court appointment.
Bob: No doubt about that. The lack of a public paper trail doesn’t mean we aren’t entitled to know the nominee. That’s a lesson I hope this president learned from this failed nomination.
Cal: “ Trust me” doesn’t work for conservatives or liberals. Who knew?
Bob: The Miers nomination did, indeed, create odd coalitions! Who knows what awaits uswith the next pick?
Cal: Fasten your seatbelt, Bob.