Kagan must be Filibustered

Let's engage in a thought experiment:

The year is 2015. President Jim DeMint is offered the opportunity to name a replacement to the United States Supreme Court following the surprise health related resignation of aging jurist Antonin Scalia.

President DeMint nominates long time friend and current Solicitor General Gamey McCock, age 50. McCock is the current solicitor general, having been confirmed over the objections of 31 Senate Democrats who felt he lacked the experience to serve the administration in what is essentially a temporary job. Because Scalia is a member of the court's conservative wing, the McCock nomination is not viewed as likely to change the balance of the court.

Prior to his service in the DeMint administration, Gamey McCock worked in the George W. Bush administration, helping to shepherd nominees John Roberts and Samual Alito through difficult confirmation proceedings. He also spent a year as a clerk for Justice Clarence Thomas. From there, he worked for several years as the Dean of the Law School at the University of South Carolina School of Law. To top it off, he was also a paid advisor to Bear Stearns, a company currently alleged to be engaged in questionable, and possibly criminal, business deals that many feel accelerated the stock market crash of 2014. Bear Stearns also happens to be a major contributor of funds to President DeMint. As it turns out, Stearns currently faces criminal investigation, and the case could theoretically appear in front of the Court.

Now, McCock has never been a judge, and, in fact, has no practical experience as a litigator. He has never argued a case before the Supreme Court, and he has a paper trail consisting of only a couple of law review articles, none of which appear particularly controversial. In fact, McCock's chief credential seems to be that he used to hang out in Columbia with Pres. DeMint, and they have a friendship that extends farther back than the beginning of DeMint's political career.

McCock has, however, taken one public stand that gained some national attention. While Dean of the USC Law School, McCock barred the Justice Department from allowing DoJ recruiters on campus in response to the Obama administration's promulgation of regulations designed to get around the Supreme Court's "Heller" decision. The USC ban occurred after congress had passed the Schumer Amendment, in which schools that denied access to DoJ recruiters faced the loss of federal funds.

"Denying a person their right to bear arms is a moral injustice of the first order," McCock is quoted as saying. Since this occurred, states have taken a variety of approaches in dealing with 2nd Amendment rights, and legal observers view it as exceeding likely that the USSCt will be addressing this issue within the next couple of terms to resolve a growing spilt between the circuits. Pres. DeMint has recently angered some gun right's supporters over his failure to aggressively overturn 11th hour executive orders related to gun-rights passed by Pres. Obama in the closing days of his administration.

Needless to say, after leading the successful repeal of the Obamacare legislation through a contentious session of Congress, Pres. DeMint is looking for a nominee who won't provoke a fight. In fact, he views McCock's relatively scarce record, and his youth, as assets not only in obtaining confirmation but in ensuring a long term stamp on the court's direction.

Given the above scenario, who here believes that a Democratic Minority, down to only 41 members following the 2012 and 2014 elections, would acquiesce to the confirmation of Mr. McCock?

I don't. I believe the Left would be howling in anger. And, in this instance, they would be Right (heh) to do so.

Because the left would understand this pick for what it is: a crony appointment of a wholly unqualified nominee based primarily on the facts that: the nominee shares a high profile view on a single issue that is "politically correct" in the Administration's eyes; that appeals to a specific voting block in the President's base; and that provides a major fundraiser with the "understood" assurances that their legal interests will have someone keeping an eye on them.

The Kagan selection is "Crony Capitalism" extended to the Federal Bench. It is emblematic of everything that is wrong with the "Chicago Brand" of politics.

In its own way, is it even worse and more cynical than the selections of Sonia Sotomayor (who was confirmed) and of Harriet Myers (who wasn't). While I disagreed with both of their nominations, I never imagined their selections to be inherentlycorrupt in their inception.

I can't say the same about this pick.

Which is why I believe that the GOP has to aggressively fight this nominee. Even if that means Kagan is replaced by a more aggressively liberal choice.

Because this pick is Barack Obama thumbing his nose at the entire system. It's about rewarding campaign contributors and targeted subsets of supporters.

But mainly It's about destroying the last vestiges of respect for notions of "justice" and "equality before the law" and "fair play" that the Federal Courts rely on for their moral authority

You think that isn't worth it's weight in gold to a President seeking to "fundamentally transform" America?

I do.

So I urge the GOP to fight this nomination. They should filibuster Kagan and expose this Chicago style "cronyism" for exactly what it is.

posted by Jack M. at 12:06 PM

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