Party of No Clue: Reid's opponent thinks Pelosi is involved in SCOTUS selection process

[ProSense]

Reid Opponent Says Nancy Pelosi Involved In SCOTUS Selection Process

Evan McMorris-Santoro

Former Nevada GOP Chair Sue Lowden -- now among the slew of Republicans running for the right to challenge Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in November -- might want to consult her high school American Government textbook before she tries to say anything else about the retirement of Supreme Court Justice Paul Stevens.

In a press release posted to her campaign website this afternoon, Lowden calls on Reid and President Obama to "cross-party lines" in the wake of the Stevens retirement "and nominate as well as confirm a candidate that will serve with judicial restraint, ruling by the virtue of our Constitution as intended by our Founding Fathers." That's all well and good. But then Lowden calls on a third Democrat to reach across the aisle in the Supreme Court selection process: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

A quick reminder for Lowden and anyone else who might be just a little confused: only the President can nominate Supreme Court justices, and only the Senate can confirm them.

Here's Lowden's full quote from the release:

"I want to thank Justice Stevens for his years of service on the bench," said Lowden. "The announcement of his retirement opens the door for President Obama, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi to cross party lines and nominate as well as confirm a candidate that will serve with judicial restraint, ruling by the virtue of our Constitution as intended by our Founding Fathers. It is clear that Justice Stevens' successor will hold great responsibility, and it is imperative the he or she defend our freedoms, support state's rights and ensure the hand of the law does not impede our Constitution."

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[Tippy]

1. K&R

[Xipe Totec]

2. Hey, Lowden...

[mindwalker_i]

3. Isn't she calling for a litmus test?

[Cha]

4. We're dealing with extreme idiots.

Willful or otherwise..it makes no difference.

[retread]

5. The trick is to mention Obama, Reid and Pelosi in the same sentence. It doesn't have to

even make sense much less remotely resemble the facts.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

7. Yeah

I think it works kind of like when Bush was running around talking about Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein during the run up to the 2003 invasion/occupation- making people think that they were plotting doing evil things together despite the absence of any kind of relationship.
Obama, Reid, and Pelosi seem to have become the triumvirate of evil in this country, at least according to right-wingers. Hell, right-wingers have been trying to use Pelosi as a San Francisco ULTRA-LIBERAL "left-wing boogeyman" since before the 2006 midterm elections. Unfortunately (for them), it has apparently never worked for them very well. 50%+ of people approve of Obama, so I don't know how many people other than your average wingnut that's going to work with. And as far as Reid goes, well, who's Reid (for those outside the beltway and Nevada)? :shrug: Another right-wing epic (going to) fail.

[4lbs]

6. Wow, I didn't know Pelosi became a U.S. Senator.

When did that happen?

[old mark]

8. Hey, they are Republicans and don't require that smarty sensey thing...nt

[Mass]

9. She is one of the most powerful person in the country. To think she is not involved in the process

is stupid.

Of course, there is no constitutional role for her in this process, but do people actually think she will not be consulted?

This is what I hate with bloggers on both sides, strident statements that are meaningless.

[ProSense]

11. "Of course, there is no constitutional role for her in this process"

Period.

The rest is speculation that requires a leap of logic. Was Pelosi consulted on Sotomayor's nomination? Hillary's?

Pelosi might have inside information, but the notion that she is remotely involved in the selection process is ridiculous.

[KingFlorez]

12. Bottom line, it was pointless to bring her up

Lowden's statement makes it appear like she has no clue how the process works. It's a stretch to say that Lowden was trying to say that Pelosi would be merely consulted, but even if that's what she was actually trying to say, she has no way of knowing who the President would consult and that equals making baseless claims.

[Hippo_Tron]

13. I highly doubt she will be consulted

If she held some sway over Senators then yes, it's possible, but as Speaker of the House her influence is mostly limited to the House.

[Odin2005]

10. MORAN!