The Method to His Madness.
Or rather, his calmness, or coolness….
President Barack Obama is a shrewd, intelligent politician and tactician. Those on the right who think he is stupid, or nothing but a speechmaker who cannot think without a teleprompter, have severely underestimated their opponent, almost irredeemably so. President Obama knows all too well the nature of his opponents. He set a trap for them this past week that the virulent right wing base of the Republican Party, with all of their, shall we say, tendencies, fell right into.
The method to his madness: if your opposition is going to destroy themselves, step out of the way.
He nominated a judge who is more qualified in judicial experience than any Supreme Court Justice currently living. Indeed, she has more judicial experience than any judge going back 70 years. I have read some of her opinions already, and I must say, if she has an judicial philosophy, it is conservative and not liberal. She follows precedent, and shows restraint.
But she is also only the fourth woman ever to be nominated to the court, and she is the first Hispanic to be nominated. As a result, the right wing opposition is placed in a predicament. Any opposition to her nomination could be seen as an affront to the Latino community, given the historic nature. Republican office holders understood that, hence the measured “wait and see” reaction from many Republican Senators on Tuesday and Wednesday. They understood the electoral consequences.
But the non-office holders are not bound by such concerns. Gingrich, Tancredo, Limbaugh, Liddy et al do not answer to the voters. As such, their contempt was unrestrained. And their opposition so far is based on her ethnicity and her gender. The idea that she must be a practitioner of identity politics, a person whose every success is due to preferential treatment, etc., is apparently one they absolutely cannot resist.
President Obama knew this. He got a win-win. An excellent, qualified, historic nominee, that was guaranteed to drive the right wing so crazy that they would reveal their true colors, all the more alienating his opposition from the mainstream of America.
Why do you say that she is the first Hispanic nominated? Does Justice Benjamin Nathan Cardozo not count as Hispanic because his family was Jewish and from Spain and Portugal? Are you equating Hispanic with Latino which usually refers to people of Latin American heritage?
Republicans have to understand that they don’t have to fight every battle. They need to choose their fights, wisely.
Attack, attack, attack, attack, feign goodwill, attack, attack, attack, attack, pocket the spoils.
Get with the program David.
Dave – Let’s take this slowly:
* Hispanic refers to matters of Spanish culture, language and heritage.
* Portuguese folks are not Spanish. Let Josh take it from here:
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2009/05/scotus_sephardic_jew_trivia_edition.php
What John said.
I must say, the Cardozo boomlet this week was interesting. I must say, no one ever claimed he was Hispanic before Sotomayor was nominated, and I find that interesting.
What Republicans have to understand and accept is that there is and always will be a double standard. The left takes out Miguel Estrada at the knees – nothing. They filibuster Sam Alito – nothing. They treat Bork so poorly that he becomes a verb – nothing.
So we just have to accept it and move on. Let the attention whores say what they need to for their ratings, and let the nominee have her hearings and her vote, and then move on. We can’t win.
Nice to see DD admit that the nomination was 100% political in nature, though. Speaks very poorly of the President that he would give a life appointment to someone for the sole purpose of scoring political points.
The difference between Spain and Portugal boggles the Republican mind.
All semi-brown/non-whites are hispanic, which makes life easy. (BTW – Italians, Greeks and Irish only recently qualified as non-brown, but that is another story.)
Take this slowly. One set of grandparents were from Spain which is a center of Spanish culture. The fact that his other grandparents were from the other nation on the Peninsula doesn’t invalidate that fact.
Now is it because he was considered the first Jew on the court or because he wasn’t Latin. It is like people asking if a person from Africa is African American.
It is no question that her nomination is historic as the first Latina and first Puertorican American.
It was just an informational question.
Shorter FSP: When will privileged white guys ever get fair shake in this country?
Dave,
First, Alito was not filibustered – check your history – the vote to filibuster failed. Please stop making stuff up.
Second, there are political aspects to any SCOTUS nomination. This one is no different. Nevertheless, she also has a very long and public judicial record and a record of bipartisan support in her previous nominations and confirmation hearings.
Third, for you to write that DD admits “that the nomination was 100% political in nature” deliberately and disingenuously distorts what DD wrote. He never wrote that nor does his post imply it, and you know it.
Fourth, the last woman your side nominated was Harriet Miers. There is nothing more that needs to be said after that.
“They filibuster Sam Alito – nothing. ”
There was no filibuster of Scalito. A half-hearted suggestion to do so gathered no steam.
On the other hand, a few petulant Republicans are keeping the remarkable Dawn Johnsen from getting started at DoJ.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-johnsen11-2009may11,0,6490403.story
When do we get to the feign goodwill part? I’m looking forward to that.
What Republicans have to understand and accept is that there is and always will be a double standard.
It probably makes you feel better to think that there is some double standard, but the only difference between the two is that repubs will make their criticisms in the ugliest ways possible. cf Tancredo, Liddy, Limbaugh. The entire machine rolled out to basically make it plain that there is no way a Puerto Rican from the projects could have ever gotten as far as she has without made up preferences. Art Downs is in here calling her a Project Princess. No substance — just an atavistic reach for the Southern Strategies that got party to where it is now.
You can probably find something stupid that some Dem somewhere said about Estrada — but the entire mainstream of the party did not make a point of trying to denigrate the man’s ethnicity as a proxy for criticism of the man’s record. And Estrada was taken down by his full metal wingnut record. Not because Democrats hoped he wasn’t menstruating or some such bullshit.
It’s infuriating to see the assumption that only white males are qualified and everyone else must be an affirmative action case. The Republican critics can’t wrap their heads around the idea that she is more qualified than their own beloved wingnut judges like Scalia, Thomas, Roberts and Alito.
“First, Alito was not filibustered – check your history – the vote to filibuster failed. Please stop making stuff up.”
Actually, I believe it was a vote for cloture to end debate. And I believe it passed. Check your history and stop making stuff up.
“It’s infuriating to see the assumption that only white males are qualified and everyone else must be an affirmative action case.”
Miguel Estrada wasn’t an affirmative action case. Neither is Sotomayor. What she is is an appointment to the highest court in the land for the sole purpose of scoring political points and doing damage to the opponent. And that is sad. Typical, but sad.
“You can probably find something stupid that some Dem somewhere said about Estrada — but the entire mainstream of the party did not make a point of trying to denigrate the man’s ethnicity as a proxy for criticism of the man’s record.”
Clarence Thomas? You want the quotes on Thomas, starting with Biden?
“And Estrada was taken down by his full metal wingnut record. Not because Democrats hoped he wasn’t menstruating or some such bullshit.”
Liddy, Gingrich, Tancredo & Rush have no power to “take down” anyone. And Estrada was derailed by fiction.
Proud to remind all that Tom Carper helped filibuster the wretched Estrada.
“On the other hand, a few petulant Republicans are keeping the remarkable Dawn Johnsen from getting started at DoJ.”
Dawn Johnsen? For real? And you’re calling Estrada extreme?
Actually, I believe it was a vote for cloture to end debate.
You are correct, but that is different than a filibuster. Votes for cloture can happen just to to stop debate and get to a vote, even when a filibuster is not being considered. Alito was not filibustered, although some, like John Kerry, tried.
Oh, did I mention Harriet Miers to you?
The nominees statements are out of the mainstream and are inconsistent with mainstream political thought which is why she has been overturned so many times.
Obama is not that cunning or that smart, he selected a nominee just like himself. That fact is not intelligence it is human nature.
Sotomayor has spoken words which if spoken by a Republican nominee would be blasted out of the water.
Obama’s Presidency is hanging by a thread at best.
Mike Protack
Once again Magnum shows us he’s all bluster and no brains.
Keep on pissing against the wind!
Get in line and do what you are told gentlemen. Bark when the leaders say bark.
I love that the new talking point is that Obama isn’t that smart. Hilarious!
Liddy, Gingrich, Tancredo & Rush have no power to “take down” anyone.
Sure they do — they are taking down any possible idea that there is anything principled about repub opposition to Sotomayor. The price of the ugliest part of your party being perceived as the leadership of your party.
the sole purpose of scoring political points and doing damage to the opponent.
This was true of Estrada too. Except he had a record of extremism that got brought out into the light.
What’s with all the Republicans hanging out here? Shouldn’t you all be out creating jobs or something?
“What’s with all the Republicans hanging out here? Shouldn’t you all be out creating jobs or something?”
Created one yesterday. Thanks. And you?
FSP wrote Created one yesterday. Thanks. And you?
Having someone mow your lawn doesn’t count. 😉
“Get in line and do what you are told gentlemen. Bark when the leaders say bark.”
You don’t need to tell the contributors to this blog to do that. They already know.
You mock, but I’m pretty pleased to have done it.
Don’t get on FSP. Republicans created plenty of jobs for Democrats cleaning up the messes the GOP left behind. They’ve also created jobs for unemployment councilors and bankruptcy lawyers.
“Created one yesterday. Thanks. And you?”
And this is how you celebrate?
As for me, no thanks. Jobs suck. Not as bad as Republicans, but close.