He couldn’t see the forest: Today in The Seattle Times, columnist Danny Westneat has an op-ed entitled “Judge got view, lost perspective” that begins, “Remember when that federal judge had 120 trees cut down in a Seattle park to improve his view?” (via “Underneath Their Robes“).

“Miers’s Autonomy Will Be at Issue; Panel to Probe Her Judicial Reasoning”: This front page article will appear Thursday in The Washington Post. Tomorrow’s newspaper will also report that “Senators Question Tax Shelter Letters; Miers’s Law Firm Sold Documents Backing Arrangement the IRS Criticized.”

USA Today on Thursday will report that “Miers to be questioned on her independence.”

And this evening’s broadcast of the PBS program “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer” contained a segment entitled “Specter, Leahy Still Concerned About Miers Nomination” (transcript with link to audio).

Available online from law.com: An article reports that “High Court May Take Up Texas Redistricting; Justices will decide whether to hear challenges to DeLay-led plan that shuffled congressional districts.”

And in other news, “All Eyes Are on High Court Over ‘Crawford’ Issues; Thousands of cases hang in balance.”

“Miers given preview of confirmation questions; Specter says autonomy from Bush, war are likely to be addressed”: Thursday’s edition of The Dallas Morning News will contain this article.

In related coverage, at “SCOTUSblog,” Lyle Denniston has a post titled “War powers quiz for Miers.”

Thursday’s edition of The Hill will contain articles headlined “Miers is put on notice” and “House right adds its voice to opposition.”

Bloomberg News reports that “Senators Say 1993 Miers Speech Raises New Questions.”

The Associated Press reports that “Coleman to press Miers about work on tax shelter.”

And Investor’s Business Daily reports that “Miers’ Prospects Looking Bleak As Philosophy, Intellect Doubted.”

“Their clout rising, blogs are courted by Washington’s elite”: This article will appear Thursday in The Christian Science Monitor.

Available online at Slate: The Miers-o-Meter today has dropped to a 60 percent chance of confirmation.

And Fred Kaplan has an essay entitled “First, Fire All the Lawyers: It’s time to put a manager in charge of the Department of Homeland Security.”

“Miers Nomination on Uncertain Ground”: This segment (RealPlayer required) appeared on this evening’s broadcast of NPR‘s “All Things Considered.”

“Miers’s Muddle: In her own words.” Edward Whelan has this essay at National Review Online.

“New GOP jitters over Miers nomination; Apparent reversal in abortion views prompts puzzlement among senators”: Tom Curry, national affairs writer for MSNBC, provides this report.

“Text of Letter From Specter to Miers”: The AP has posted it online here.

“Operation Rescue promises to actively oppose the nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court of the United States if she refuses to withdraw her name from consideration.” You can access the organization’s press release at this link.

“Miers’ Former Law Firm Opens D.C. Office”: The Associated Press provides this report. The office apparently does not intend to focus on handling cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

“Prosecutor Meets With Chief Judge; Could Signal That Fitzgerald Is Seeking Extension”: Josh Gerstein of The New York Sun provides this breaking news update.

The Associated Press is reporting: Now available online are articles headlined “Specter Gives Miers Heads Up on Questions“; “Senate May Probe Miers’ Lottery Days“; and “BlackBerry Maker Denied High Court Appeal.”

“Revisiting Proposals to Split the Ninth Circuit: An Inevitable Solution to a Growing Problem”: This hearing is just getting underway now before the Senate Judiciary Committee‘s Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts. You can view the hearing live online by clicking here (RealPlayer required).

I have posted online at this link the prepared testimony of Ninth Circuit Judge Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain, complete with full color charts and graphs.

Statement of 450 Professors of Law on Hamdan v. Rumsfeld: A letter signed by 450 law professors urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld can be viewed online here, while an alphabetical list of those who signed the letter is available at this link. Several of the most notable signatories have forwarded a copy of the letter to the ranking members of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

And for those whose penchant for all things Hamdan still isn’t sated, you can also access online Owen Bonheimer’s op-ed from Monday’s issue of Legal Times, “Blind Justice: Fair Trials for Salim Hamdan Here and Saddam Hussein in Iraq Can’t be Based on Secret Evidence; The World is Watching Us.”

“Miers Should Withdraw Now”: Edward Whelan has this post today at National Review Online’s “Bench Memos” blog.

“Sen. Wants Proof Miers Is Conservative”: Jesse J. Holland of The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “The White House should provide written evidence that Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers has a conservative judicial philosophy instead of asking senators to rely her statements or the word of her friends, conservative Sen. David Vitter, R-La., said Wednesday.”

Forthcoming speaking appearances: This Saturday, Law Professor Doug Berman and I will be in Monterey, California to speak about law blogs at the annual conference of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. Of course, Monterey isn’t in the Eastern District of California, but it’s supposedly a very nice destination, so no complaints here.

On Monday, November 7, 2005, I’ll be in Chicago, Illinois at the invitation of the University of Chicago Law School‘s American Constitution Society chapter to debate the Solomon Amendment case with the founder and president of Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights.

Then on Veterans Day, Friday, November 11, 2005, we will reprise the Solomon Amendment debate in the format of a moot court at the Boston College Law School.

“A Good Judge of Judges? Harriet Miers’s role in the vetting of judicial candidates.” Terry Eastland has this essay in the October 31, 2005 issue of The Weekly Standard.

Michigan’s retirement system applicable to state judges is entitled to Eleventh Amendment immunity, sharply divided en banc Sixth Circuit rules: You can access today’s en banc ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit at this link. Circuit Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton (who wasn’t on the original three-judge panel) wrote the en banc majority’s opinion. The original three-judge panel had reached the opposite result, by a 2-1 vote.

“In Speeches From 1990s, Clues About Miers Views; Nominee Defended Social Activism”: In connection with this front page article that appears today in The Washington Post, that newspaper has posted online the text of two speeches that Harriet Miers delivered. The speeches are identified as “Speech to the Executive Women of Dallas (Spring 1993)” and “Women and Courage (Summer 1993).” It remains to be seen whether readers of the second speech’s first sentence will be more troubled by the misuse of “too” or the misspelling of Ruth Bader Ginsburg‘s last name.

“Miers Vox Pop”: CBS News legal analyst Andrew Cohen has this essay today at cbs4denver.com.

“Abortion issue’s opponents wary of the fine print”: Today in The San Francisco Chronicle, Bob Egelko has an article that begins, “The principal debate over Proposition 73 is whether doctors should have to notify a pregnant teen’s parents before performing an abortion. But other controversies are lurking in the fine print. One little-discussed provision of the Nov. 8 ballot measure would create a public scorecard for judges who rule on minors’ abortions. Another would define abortion in the state Constitution as the killing of ‘a child conceived but not yet born.'”

“Conservative Group Campaigns Against Miers Nomination”: This segment (RealPlayer required) appeared on today’s broadcast of NPR‘s “Morning Edition.”

“Bush: Miers Views Not Clouded by Legal Scholarship.” “ScrappleFace” provides this report.

“In Speeches From 1990s, Clues About Miers Views; Nominee Defended Social Activism”: This front page article appears today in The Washington Post.

The Los Angeles Times reports today that “Before Bush, U.S. Judge in Texas Was Miers’ Hero; The Supreme Court nominee had effusive praise for a jurist who aided her career.”

The Boston Globe reports that “Senators press Bush for data from Miers White House stint; Silence may hurt court nominee, legislators warn.”

The Associated Press reports that “Miers Isolated From Social Turmoil As Teen.”

The St. Petersburg Times reports today that “Miers’ 2nd chance could be her last; Senators want more information about the Supreme Court nominee, and today is her opportunity to provide it.”

The Rocky Mountain News reports that “Judiciary committee hasn’t called Dobson; Focus chief expected to be quizzed about Miers’ nomination.”

The Washington Times contains articles headlined “Miers achieved, but stayed under the radar” and “Senators reject Miers critics.”

The New York Sun reports that “Court Nominee Gains Some Senate Support.”

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that “Miers meeting leaves Feingold feeling ‘frustrated’; Court nominee’s responses reveal little, he says.”

And The Green Bay Press-Gazette reports that “Feingold gets few answers from Miers, Supreme Court nominee.”

In commentary, The Rocky Mountain News contains an editorial entitled “Legal precedent not the be-all, end-all; Salazar’s standard won’t work.”

The Birmingham News contains an editorial entitled “Give Harriet Miers chance to be heard.”

In The Seattle Times, Carl Jeffers has an op-ed entitled “With Miers, the president may move court to the left.”

And at OpinionJournal, U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Griesa has an essay entitled “Tried and True: The Supreme Court would benefit from a trial lawyer’s experience.” And Holman W. Jenkins Jr. has an essay entitled “The Real Lottery Scandal: Harriet Miers and America’s pathetic affair with state gambling.”

“A Supreme Court Order Affords Some Insight Into The Roberts Court’s View of Roe v. Wade: Must Prison Officials Transport an Inmate to an Abortion Clinic?” FindLaw commentator Michael C. Dorf has this essay today.