How Appealing



Thursday, October 27, 2005

Programming note: After waking up quite early tomorrow morning, I’ll be spending a good portion of my 41st birthday traveling from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Monterey, California for reasons earlier mentioned here. If a working internet connection awaits me at the hotel, additional posts could appear online here before Friday evening.

Posted at 10:10 PM by Howard Bashman



Available online from National Public Radio: This evening’s broadcast of “All Things Considered” contained segments entitled “Republican Opposition Made Miers Bid Untenable“; “Understanding the Miers Withdrawal“; “Tracking Miers’ Downward Trajectory“; “Senators on Miers’ Decision to Withdraw Nomination“; and “Conservative Columnist’s Miers Plan Played Out.”

And today’s broadcast of “Talk of the Nation” contained a segment entitled “Harriet Miers: What Went Wrong.”

RealPlayer is required to launch these audio segments.

Posted at 10:05 PM by Howard Bashman



“Bush’s Court Choice Ends Bid; Conservatives Attacked Miers”: This article will appear Friday in The New York Times, along with articles headlined “Bush Is Not Expected to Feel Need to Pick Woman Again“; “For Now, and Possibly This Year, Talk of a Vacancy on the Court Appears to Be Mere Talk“; “Steady Erosion in Support Undercut Nomination“; and “Miers’s Supporters Wince at How She Was Treated; She Seems to Bear Up Well.”

And Friday’s edition of The Washington Post will contain front page articles headlined “Miers Withdrawn as Nominee For Court; Search Begins Anew; She Cites Senate Requests For White House Papers“; “Nomination Was Plagued By Missteps From the Start“; and “A Weakened Bush Faces New Risks,” along with articles headlined “The Rift’s Repercussions Could Last Rest of Term” and “A Victory for Pundits In the Miers Meltdown.”

Posted at 10:00 PM by Howard Bashman



“Far right relieved as Miers steps aside; Leaders say they want justice with clear conservative views”: CNN.com provides this report.

Posted at 9:55 PM by Howard Bashman



“Miers never got off to good start with senators”: This article will appear Friday in The Chicago Tribune, along with an article headlined “Withdrawal marks rare moment of weakness, surrender for Bush.”

The Dallas Morning News on Friday will report that “Bush’s allies doomed Miers nomination.”

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Friday will report that “Miers withdraws; Democrats brace for more conservative pick.”

The Los Angeles Times provides a news update headlined “Bush Suffers Waning Influence.”

Investor’s Business Daily reports that “Supreme Court Seat Back Up For Grabs As Miers Bows Out.”

The Guardian (UK) on Friday contains articles headlined “White House crisis grows as Miers quits” and “Humiliated Bush forced to retreat as moral right turns its guns on him.”

And The Independent (UK) on Friday contains an article headlined “Bush defeat as Court nominee withdraws.”

In commentary, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Friday will contain an editorial entitled “No ideologue for the court.”

The Minneapolis Star Tribune on Friday will contain an editorial entitled “Harriet Miers’ failure is president’s too; The court and public deserve a more serious nomination.”

And The Seattle Post-Intelligencer on Friday will contain an editorial entitled “Supreme Court: Weak, weak.”

Posted at 8:40 PM by Howard Bashman



Lest I be accused …: … of only linking to the statement of a Ninth Circuit split supporter, you can access here the prepared texts of the statements of all the witnesses who testified yesterday before a Senate Judiciary Committee subcommittee on the topic of breaking up the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. One thing listening to the audio of yesterday’s hearing taught me is that the odds of a Senator from Alabama sharing the same sense of humor as Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski are quite small indeed.

Posted at 5:30 PM by Howard Bashman



“Withdrawal Means O’Connor Still Unretired”: Gina Holland of The Associated Press provides this report.

Which reminds me, while I’m jetting across the United States tomorrow for Saturday’s conference in Monterey, I’ll be reading Joan Biskupic‘s new book, “Sandra Day O’Connor: How the First Woman on the Supreme Court Became Its Most Influential Justice.” I began reading the book over lunch the other day, and it’s quite an interesting read.

Posted at 5:15 PM by Howard Bashman



“U.S. court backs order suspending voter ID in Ga.”: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution provides a news update that begins, “The federal appeals court in Atlanta today denied a request to set aside an injunction barring enforcement of the state’s new voter ID requirement in the upcoming municipal elections held statewide.”

Posted at 4:15 PM by Howard Bashman



“With Miers out, what’s Plan B? Now President Bush must find a Supreme Court nominee who can satisfy his base yet clear the Senate.” This article will appear Friday in The Christian Science Monitor.

Posted at 2:25 PM by Howard Bashman



“Zero!!! Harriet Miers goes down (and so do we).” Slate’s no doubt final installment of the Miers-o-Meter is here.

Posted at 11:45 AM by Howard Bashman