WP: Liberals, Don't Make Her an Icon

[many a good man]

Liberals, Don't Make Her an Icon
By Edward Lazarus

Sunday, July 10, 2005; Page B03
LOS ANGELES

<snip

Liberal lobbying for an O'Connor-esque nominee carries a double shot of danger. First, it will serve to confirm and reinforce the conservative critique of liberals that, when it comes to the Constitution, they have no principles, only preferences that they want to impose on the nation. And, second, most of the time -- and usually when it really counts -- a conservative in the O'Connor mold will vote conservative, often extremely so. Remember Bush v. Gore ? That was a classic of unprincipled, case-specific, result-driven judging -- and the O'Connors of the world would be on board every time.

The liberals' search for the next O'Connor is already twisting them into intellectual pretzels. Who could have imagined, as Democrats appropriately skewered then Attorney General-designate Alberto Gonzales for his authorship of the notorious torture memos, that these same senators would be virtually praying for Bush to nominate him to the Supreme Court?

There is a root cause for this incoherence. It is the liberal obsession with Roe. Many on the left cherish O'Connor because she helped save Roe. They will confirm Gonzales because they hope he will do the same. And they will try to torpedo a more right-wing nominee -- as they did Robert Bork -- as an enemy of the right to privacy on which Roe is based.

Whatever the political benefits of this strategy, it sells the Democrats' intellectual souls. Roe is easily defended as good policy or, after 32 years, settled law. But as a matter of constitutional interpretation, even most liberal jurisprudes -- if you administer truth serum -- will tell you it is basically indefensible. Yet Democrats have made it a litmus test.

/snip>

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/08/AR2005070802261.html

[justinsb]

1. What about John McCain

as a justice. You don't have to be a judge. McCain seems to be fairly centrist and fair minded and then the right wing of the GOP won't have to worry about McCain running for president.

[acmavm]

2. Surely you jest?

.