Neil D Posted January 27, 2006 Share Posted January 27, 2006 Alito Impresses One-Time Brennan Law Clerks By JOSEPH STERNBERG - Staff Reporter of the Sun January 27, 2006 WASHINGTON - With a vote on Samuel Alito's Supreme Court nomination expected early next week, several prominent New York lawyers, including three former law clerks to the liberal Justice Brennan, disputed the New York Times's urging that Americans should be frightened by the prospect that Judge Alito will soon sit on the high court. Meanwhile, a split over the impending vote developed between Senate Democrats, with some calling for a filibuster and others backing Judge Alito's confirmation. In an editorial Thursday, the Times called on Democrats to filibuster the nomination, writing that Judge Alito "holds extreme views about the expansive powers of the presidency and the limited role of Congress." The Times wrote that the prospect of seating Judge Alito on the Supreme Court would be more "frightening" than the prospect of filibustering a high court nominee. Two Democratic senators, Robert Byrd of West Virginia and Tim Johnson of South Dakota, apparently disagreed, announcing their intention to support Judge Alito's confirmation. The move brings to three the number of Democrats who have said they will vote for the nominee. But a few other Democrats appeared ready to stiffen their resistance, with Senator Kerry of Massachusetts calling for a filibuster. Lawyers interviewed by The New York Sun roundly dismissed the Times's suggestion that Judge Alito's confirmation would be disastrous. Judge Alito "is certainly not out of the mainstream," a litigator at the firm Kaye Scholer and a former clerk to Justice Brennan, Peter Fishbein, told the Sun in response to the Times's editorial. Mr. Fishbein described such criticism of Judge Alito as "overkill." "Alito is not someone I would have nominated," Mr. Fishbein said. But Mr. Fishbein said that in order to get a nominee he would like, he would have to elect a president with whom he agreed. [:"green"] The rest of the story is found [/] here. [:"blue"] Summed up, the Alito nomination will probably go thru. If the democrates filibuster [anyone care to explain this concept?], it is expected to fail. What will be the political fallout from this? Would this give the Democrates some "backbone", as some who critizise the Democrates, needed to show the rest of the country how Republicans are pushing thru thier agenda? And what is the Republican agenda? [/] Quote Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted January 28, 2006 Share Posted January 28, 2006 Nothing is wrong with a political party pushing through their agenda since that is what they are elected to do. However I am not sure anyone knows what the Republican agenda is. The Democrat agenda seems to be just to oppose the Republicans no matter what the issue is. Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil D Posted January 28, 2006 Author Share Posted January 28, 2006 Quote: Nothing is wrong with a political party pushing through their agenda since that is what they are elected to do. Look here, this is not right. If you push thru a political agenda, that does not necessarily mean that it is the right thing to do. Example, splitting the presidency into 2 jobs where one is the figure head, and the other the working president. [A monarchy and PM is a relatively equal example of this]. It can be argued that ceremony takes too much time away from the crucial workings of the presidency, like the Iraq War vs the ceremonies of greeting the Kings and Queens of other countries. The arguement goes that a "Figurehead president" would take care of the throwing out the first baseball at the begining of the baseball season. A political agenda doesn't mean that it is the right thing to do, but rather a political agenda to satisfy a few. Quote: However I am not sure anyone knows what the Republican agenda is. Twould be best if the religious right were out of the picture entirely. Their agenda is the one that is being pushed the hardest at this time. Quietly, firmly, but distinctly. Quote: The Democrat agenda seems to be just to oppose the Republicans no matter what the issue is. They are carefully opposing the religious right's agenda. And getting hammered for it. They need to take a stand and oppose the right. If the right win, it's time to really look for Jesus coming...If the dems come back and take back the house and the senate, I would expect that we are here for another 10 years at least. Quote Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil D Posted January 28, 2006 Author Share Posted January 28, 2006 I recieved this from Moveon.org. Quote: Late yesterday afternoon, Senators Kerry and Kennedy announced that they will lead a filibuster against the nomination of Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court. The vote will come Monday, and now the rest of the Democrats have just over 48 hours to decide which side they are on. To successfully block the nomination, 41 senators must join the Democratic filibuster. Most Republicans and a few conservative Democrats have already pledged to vote for Alito, so getting to 41 won't be easy. Every single Democrat could end up casting the last crucial vote—and this is the moment for us to weigh in. What is the current stance of the SDA church regarding Alito? And I am sorry if this changes the flavor of the thread, but I didn't think our Ozzie or Canadian friends would like World Affairs tied up with US politics. Quote Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted January 29, 2006 Share Posted January 29, 2006 Unless it has changed during the hearings, the religious liberty department of the General Conference has endorsed Judge Alito as he has an excelent record in cases dealing with religious liberty and seperation of church and state. Each political party has a party platform which is suppose to be their agenda. When they run for office they state that if elected they will push their party's platform. When a party is elected to the majority, it is expected that they will push their party's platform - which is why the people elected them. Part of the Republican's agenda is to put originalists on the federal courts. It is expected that they would push that part of their agenda. Quote: I recieved this from Moveon.org. The Rush Limbaugh or the Left. Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil D Posted January 30, 2006 Author Share Posted January 30, 2006 The Associated Press WASHINGTON Jan 30, 2006 — Liberal Democrats waged an eleventh-hour attempt Monday to block Samuel Alito's Supreme Court confirmation, arguing that he would tilt the high court further to the right. GOP Sen. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island also announced that he would vote against Alito's confirmation. Chafee, a self-described "pro-choice, pro-environment, pro-Bill of Rights Republican," is the only member of the Republican Party so far to announce that he will vote against the conservative judge. Chafee refused to support the Democrats' filibuster attempt, however. "How are we going to get anything done if we can't work together?" Chafee asked. Top Stories * Bush Speech to Outline Energy Alternatives * Kennedy Leads Final Effort to Block Alito * State of the Presidency But liberal Democrats say that Alito a former federal prosecutor and conservative lawyer for the Reagan administration would put individual rights and liberties in danger. "I think he is the wrong judge at the wrong time in the wrong place," said Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., a longtime liberal stalwart. "I do not believe he is going to be part of the whole movement of the continued march towards progress in this country." Added Sen. Jim Jeffords of Vermont, the chamber's lone independent: "The addition of Judge Alito would unacceptably shift the balance of the court on many critical issues facing our country." But time was running out, and Alito's supporters say they already had more than enough votes to ensure that he be confirmed to succeed retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. They still hoped that could happen before President Bush gives his State of the Union speech in the Capitol on Tuesday. The Senate was holding a test vote Monday afternoon. If Alito, 55, could garner at least 60 votes there, the final confirmation vote would be Tuesday morning. An Associated Press survey last week showed that Alito has at least 62 votes. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, called the filibuster attempt "a last-ditch partisan effort to mollify the lobbyists of the hard left. It will backfire, and a filibuster-proof majority will vote to move forward on this nomination." Quote Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted January 30, 2006 Share Posted January 30, 2006 Quote: Added Sen. Jim Jeffords of Vermont, the chamber's lone independent: "The addition of Judge Alito would unacceptably shift the balance of the court on many critical issues facing our country." Which, of course, is the reason many of us voted for GW Bush. We want the balance to shift. Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil D Posted January 31, 2006 Author Share Posted January 31, 2006 Quote: Which, of course, is the reason many of us voted for GW Bush. We want the balance to shift. Congratulations for creating a country that is now so paranoid that it can not trust any american to do the right thing....Once Alito is confirmed, it will have a court that will side with the executive powers to any challenge, squash any debate, and remove any choice for Americans. In another forum, you commented that you did not see where religious liberty came into this....Taking the broader view of the terms, I see where it is very relivant to religious liberty. Quote Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil D Posted January 31, 2006 Author Share Posted January 31, 2006 By Jeff Zeleny Washington Bureau Published January 31, 2006, 11:37 AM CST WASHINGTON -- Samuel Alito was confirmed to the Supreme Court today after a contentious and partisan battle in the Senate, becoming the nation's 110th justice to serve on the high court. The Senate approved Alito 58-42, one of the most divided tallies in modern history as all but four Democrats opposed him. Alito, an appellate judge whose conservative ideology was honed as a young lawyer in the Reagan administration, succeeds Sandra Day O'Connor, who shaped the court through her voice of moderation for more than two decades. Alito watched the confirmation vote with his family from the Roosevelt Room of the White House. Chief Justice John Roberts swore in Alito at a private ceremony, only hours before he was to sit alongside fellow justices at the State of the Union address. "To Judge Alito," said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), "I say you deserve a seat on the Supreme Court." The ascension of Alito—following Roberts' confirmation as chief justice last year—represents a fundamental reshaping of the court by President Bush that has been embraced by most Republicans and strenuously opposed by virtually all Democrats. The two men are the first new justices since 1994. The confirmation vote came one day after an attempt to filibuster Alito failed, with only 25 Democrats signing onto the movement led by Sens. Edward Kennedy and John Kerry of Massachusetts. "Despite every effort made by liberal Senators to smear the character of Judge Alito, to stall the vote, and to threaten a filibuster, the American people have won the confirmation of a fine judge to the Supreme Court," said Andrea Lafferty, executive director of the conservative Traditional Values Coalition. "Judge Alito is an outstanding choice for the high court. He brings no political agenda to the court, and he understands the proper role of judges." Still, Alito received the smallest level of support in modern history from senators in a president's opposing party. Last year, Roberts received 22 Democrats votes and in 1991, Justice Clarence Thomas received 11 Democratic votes. "Today's 58-42 vote to confirm Samuel Alito represents the second-highest number of votes against a confirmed Supreme Court nominee in the nation's history," said Ralph Neas, president of People for the American Way, a liberal group. But, he added: "Moral victories are not sufficient." The confirmation of Alito makes official the retirement of O'Connor, who said in July she intended to step down from the bench. But her retirement was delayed after Chief Justice William Rehnquist died. Throughout his confirmation hearings, Alito sought to make his case that he would faithfully apply the law without preconceived ideological notions. "A judge can't have any agenda," Alito told senators earlier this month. "The judge's only obligation—and it's a solemn obligation—is to the rule of law." Quote Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Lambert Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 The Supreme Coourt appears now to have moved a little toward the conservative; but that is the way that the country has been voting for more than a decade. Democrats, and especially liberal Democrats, have only themselves to blame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Jeannieb43 Posted January 31, 2006 Moderators Share Posted January 31, 2006 </font><blockquote><font class="small">Quote:</font><hr /> Ron Lambert said: Democrats, and especially liberal Democrats, have only themselves to blame. <hr /></blockquote><font class="post"> Sadly, I think I agree. Looking at the breakdown of the Senate vote on Alito, http://government.aol.com/mygov/issues/votes/?votenum=2&chamber=S&congress=1092 I see several Democrats from Republican states who voted to confirm Alito -- evidently for fear of losing their own jobs. They just handed the Supreme Court over to the radical rightwing of our country. Which I fervently believe are NOT in the majority, when one counts the population. Quote Jeannie<br /><br /><br />...Change is inevitable; growth is optional.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 In all fairness, Ruth Bader Ginsberg is as far to the left as Alito is to the right and the Republicans could have stopped her nomination but didn't. I think a lot of the Democrats that voted against Alito did it just for political posturing because this is an election year. The President gets to pick the nominees and the people know that when they elect him (or her). Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Lambert Posted February 1, 2006 Share Posted February 1, 2006 Jeannieb43, liberal Democrats call anyone who is even slightly more to the right than they are "radical right wing." This is soundbite propaganda, which they apply to virtually all Republicans. I would consider it an honor to be called that by the likes of Edward Kennedy, John Kerry, and Howard Dean. I would be very concerned if I received their approval. Exactly what positions do you see Justice Alito inclining toward that is radical or extreme or out of step with the majority of Americans? Do you believe in abortion on demand in any and all circumstances, including partial birth abortions? Anyone who does not is labeled radical right wing by the liberal Democrats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil D Posted February 1, 2006 Author Share Posted February 1, 2006 Quote: I would consider it an honor to be called that by the likes of Edward Kennedy, John Kerry, and Howard Dean. I would be very concerned if I received their approval. My brother in Christ, I am a liberal democrate, and I approve of you.... Be worried, be very worried. Quote Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Lambert Posted February 1, 2006 Share Posted February 1, 2006 Uh-oh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Jeannieb43 Posted February 1, 2006 Moderators Share Posted February 1, 2006 </font><blockquote><font class="small">Quote:</font><hr /> Ron Lambert said: . Do you believe in abortion on demand in any and all circumstances, including partial birth abortions? <hr /></blockquote><font class="post"> Yes. Having an abortion is nobody's business but the patient and her doctor. It's a very traumatic decision to make, and one which is never, repeat never, made without a great deal of agonizing and sadness. How about YOU being forced to carry and give birth to a new life when you've been raped -- or when you have no money or no home in which to care for the new life -- or when you are so ill that a pregnancy will result in your own death.....? You as a man have absolutely no understanding of those feelings. ...And furthermore, how are we modeling God to others around us, by trying to FORCE behaviors on others?? I can't begin to comprehend why someone wants to force another human being to behave in a certain way just because that is his particular belief. --Do you ever, EVER see God behaving that way? I think not. God says, Let the wheat and tares grow together till the harvest. If that's God's way, why can't you follow God's way? God created us with free will. He will never do anything to deprive us of our freedom--including freedom to make mistakes. WE must each decide FOR OURSELVES. God has not put us in charge of anyone else but ourselves. Making laws governing others' behavior is only appropriate when that behavior might possibly hurt another person [i.e., stop signs at intersections]. Abortion is a victimless act [and I won't go into the relative worth of a living breathing human being vs. a zygote]. Quote Jeannie<br /><br /><br />...Change is inevitable; growth is optional.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted February 1, 2006 Share Posted February 1, 2006 Quote: Having an abortion is nobody's business but the patient and her doctor. In order to come to this most radical conclusion one has to believe the fetus has no rights. That, of course, would mean it is not human because humans have rights - they are called human rights. Mainstream liberals believe the right to abortion should be protected up to 12 weeks, those that believe in partial birth abortion are in the radical (not mainstream) left end of the political spectrum. Few Americans believe in abortion on demand. Nearly 50% of Amercians believe abortion should be illegal and nearly another 30% believe it should be restricted and regulated. That is why the extreame left is so paranoid about originalist judges that do not view abortion as a right which is protect by the federal Constitution. The radical left knows that if the people get to decide through the democratic process they will ban it in some states and restrict and regulate it in other states. Quote: Making laws governing others' behavior is only appropriate when that behavior might possibly hurt another person Does this include abortions when the fetus' life is viable outside the womb? Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted February 1, 2006 Share Posted February 1, 2006 Just to clarify so as hopefully not be inflamatory, "radical" is just an adjective to describe the distance from the center. My position on education is "radical" as I support educational vouchers which isn't quite as radical as doing away with the Department of Education but is on that end of the spectrum. The right-wing radical position on abortion would be to ban it except in cases where the mother's life is in danger. Yet someone can be a radical left-wing liberal that supports partial-birth abortion and still recognize that the federal Constitution does not protect abortion as a right. Abortion is like the right-to-die. It is to be decided by the states, the Constitution is silent on the issue. Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil D Posted February 1, 2006 Author Share Posted February 1, 2006 Quote: In order to come to this most radical conclusion one has to believe the fetus has no rights. And regarding "radical".... Time to start new threads, as this is moving away from Alito and his court nomination.... Quote Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Bravus Posted February 1, 2006 Moderators Share Posted February 1, 2006 radically! whoa, dude, that's totally rad! Quote Truth is important Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators james423 Posted February 1, 2006 Moderators Share Posted February 1, 2006 </font><blockquote><font class="small">Quote:</font><hr /> Shane said: The Democrat agenda seems to be just to oppose the Republicans no matter what the issue is. <hr /></blockquote><font class="post"> I thought I was the only one that noticed. BTW I am not sure that I agree wiith everything the Republicans (Rove, for example) are doing. Quote James Brenneman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Shane Posted February 1, 2006 Share Posted February 1, 2006 I thought we were talking about whether or not Alito is radical and if a judge being extreame prolife or extreame prochoice would make one thus. Quote Pastoral Family Counselor... Find me at www.PostumCafe.com Author of Peculiar Christianity Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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