Harriet Miers Bows Out

Whatever the reason; let’s hope this has taught the administration that we need someone with a proven track record, who is a true constitutionalist “in the mold of Scalia and Thomas”, not someone who lacked “courage and conviction on any of the great issues from 1965 to 2005

WASHINGTON (AP) – Harriet Miers withdrew her nomination to be a Supreme Court justice Thursday in the face of stiff opposition and mounting criticism about her qualifications.

President Bush said he reluctantly accepted her decision to withdraw, after weeks of insisting that he did not want her to step down. He blamed her withdrawal on calls in the Senate for the release of internal White House documents that the administration has insisted were protected by executive privilege.

Full Story Here“.

FRC: “very disturbing”

Even FRC, who was quick (if not the first) to jump out in support of Judge Roberts is really begining to wonder what’s going on here.

Miers’ 1993 Speech Prompts More Questions

Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers spoke to the Executive Women of Dallas in 1993 and offered a troubling assessment of the abortion issue. In a story reported in today’s Washington Post (FRC has obtained the text of the speech, which was included in the papers she delivered to the Senate Judiciary Committee) Miss Miers said: “The ongoing debate continues surrounding the attempt to once again criminalize abortions or to once and for all guarantee the freedom of the individual [woman’s right] to decide for herself whether she will have an abortion.” She urged her listeners to remember that “we gave up…legislating religion or morality.” She added: “When science cannot determine the facts and decisions vary based upon religious belief, then government should not act.”

This is very disturbing. Miss Miers’ words are a close paraphrase of the infamous Roe v. Wade decision. Her use of terms like criminalize abortion to characterize the pro-life position and guarantee freedom to describe the pro-choice position should have sounded alarms in the White House during the vetting process. When we defend the right to life, we hearken back to the Declaration of Independence, not to some strictly sectarian view. Science has long ago answered the question of when human life begins. The constitutional and legal question is whether we are going to defend innocent human life from lethal assault. This speech raises very troubling questions about Miss Miers’ views of constitutional matters.

Additional Resources
In Speeches From 1990s, Clues About Miers Views

Operation Rescue: “This Is The Last Straw!”

I bet it’s not the last straw. I’m sure we’ll find out even more that upsets us in the days and weeks to come.

“In recent weeks, the only evidence that has been forthcoming concerning Miers judicial philosophy &#8212 if any &#8212 especially concerning life issues has caused us to be more concerned than ever that Miers is not the right person for this job,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman.

“Evidence published today in the Washington Post shows that Miers cannot be trusted,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman. “In speeches given to a Dallas women’s group, she praised rabid pro-aborts such as Gloria Steinem, Hillary Clinton, and Kay Bailey Hutchinson and made disturbing remarks in favor of ‘self-determination’ &#8212 a liberal code word for abortion on demand. This indicates that the Miers nomination is an utter betrayal of President Bush’s campaign promise to conservatives to appoint justices to the Supreme Court in the mold of Scalia and Thomas.”

Full Story here.