Bush stands by his court choice
Published 9:00 pm Saturday, October 8, 2005
WASHINGTON – President Bush countered displeasure from the far right of his own party Saturday with a detailed defense of Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers, saying the White House counsel would bring to the bench her vast experience at the highest levels of government.
“No Supreme Court nominee in the last 35 years has exceeded Harriet Miers’ overall range of experience in courtroom litigation; service in federal, state and local government; leadership in local, state and national bar associations; and pro bono and charitable activities,” Bush said in his weekly radio address.
“Throughout her life, Ms. Miers has excelled at everything she has done,” he added.
A growing number of Republican conservatives have expressed opposition to Bush’s selection of Miers to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.
The grumbling stems from Miers’ career, which encompasses 28 years as a corporate attorney in Texas, a member of the Dallas City Council, chairwoman of the Texas Lottery Commission and, since 2001, as a top member of Bush’s White House staff.
None of the positions provide a public record clearly identifying her as a die-hard conservative.
Some worry that Miers could end up disappointing the right much as Justice David Souter did. Souter was a little-known judge when he was nominated to the court in 1990 by President George H.W. Bush. He later turned out to be more liberal than expected.
Other critics have expressed concern about Miers’ lack of experience grappling with constitutional reasoning.
Robert Bork, whose nomination to the high court was rejected by the Senate in 1987, called the choice of Miers “a disaster on every level.”
“It’s a little late to develop a constitutional philosophy or begin to work it out when you’re on the court already,” Bork said Friday on MSNBC’s “The Situation With Tucker Carlson.” “It’s kind of a slap in the face to the conservatives who’ve been building up a conservative legal movement for the last 20 years.”
Bush responded to the critics by offering a point-by-point recounting of Miers’ background and talents. The president touted the “hundreds of cases in state and federal courts, from massive commercial litigation to criminal cases to civil disputes” that Miers handled as an attorney at a large Texas law firm.
And he said, as White House counsel, Miers has addressed complex matters of constitutional law and “sensitive issues of executive-congressional relations.”
Bush also spoke glowingly of Supreme Court candidates who were not sitting judges. Since 1933, he said, 10 of the 34 justices – including the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist – came to the Supreme Court directly from positions in the executive branch.
“Harriet Miers will be prudent in exercising judicial power and firm in defending judicial independence,” Bush said.
Miers’ is spending the weekend in Texas gathering material from her legal career to answer questions during her upcoming Senate hearing, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.
