WP: GOP Plans 'Marathon' On Judges (Debate to Spotlight Blocked Nominees )

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14075-2003Nov7.html

GOP Plans 'Marathon' On Judges
Debate to Spotlight Blocked Nominees

By Mike Allen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, November 8, 2003; Page A01


A brewing rebellion by conservative activists has prompted Senate Republican leaders to plan to devote at least 30 straight hours of debate next week to their bid to confirm a handful of judicial nominees being blocked by Democrats. The Republicans are bringing in food and cots for the "Justice for Judges Marathon," scheduled for Wednesday night through Friday morning.

Despite the showiness, neither side expects the spectacle to change a single vote or resolve the bitter impasse. Like previous acts in the high-decibel fight over the lifetime judgeships, the planned all-nighter is unlikely to stir the typical voter's attention or concern, according to pollsters and lawmakers.

Still, both parties see the past nine months of angry wrangling over President Bush's nominees as a prime motivational issue for their most loyal supporters -- the politically active GOP conservatives and Democratic liberals who can be counted on to give money and turn out voters if they are fired up over sharply partisan issues such as judgeships.

But the standoff also carries considerable risks for both parties. By continuing to filibuster a few of Bush's most conservative nominees, Democrats could make it easier for the GOP to portray them as politically motivated obstructionists -- a long-running Republican theme.

They won't be happy until they hijack all three branches of the government, will they?
All this is nothing more than showboating because they have nothing to lose at this point. I can see Fox News whores salivating over this one.
Did anyone catch Orrin Hatch's remarks during the debate?

How much time did they debate on going to war and giving away their right to declare war to Bush?

This is a disgrace that Frist has scheduled this wasting the time of the
Senate on pure politics.

Where's moveon.org when you need them? Where are the petitions to sign?

I am calling and writing Senators..........this should backfire in their faces.

Why don't the Democrats bring back all of the Clinton judicial nominess who were blocked during his 8 years and have them speak outside the hearing room while the Repubs are in the hearing room accusing the Democrats of having bigotry against every minority group?

In the 8th Circuit we have so many new, conservative appointees (the latest a Whitewater investigator) and only 1 has any prior trial court judicial experience. How sad .... We had the former Iowa Attorney General nominated for over a year and she was never given a hearing ... by their logic the Republicans were anti-women???

Phone and email your Senators to maintain the filibuster, and to vote against extreme judicial nominees, if it comes to a vote.

For more information on how awful some of George W.'s nominees are, click here:
http://www.pfaw.org/pfaw/general/default.aspx?oid=103