And yet another cold wind from the South...

U.S. Senate Democrats call for documents related to Supreme Court Nominee John Roberts -- but the White House says "No".

Newly released documents indicate that Supreme Court nominee John Roberts was an influential member of the Reagan administration in arguing that the Supreme Court be stripped of its jurisdiction over cases involving abortion, busing and school prayer, among his other activities.

He met with Moderate Republican Olympia Snow of Maine, who is Pro-Choice, who said she did discuss Roe vs. Wade with him. She SAYS he respects the precedent, and how the "rule of law weighs decisively in his decisions". She spoke well of him, hasn't made a decision on him yet, etc.

'Course he'll meet with her, and expects HER to speak to the public on his behalf i.e. presenting him by way of second-hand account.

Among his (dubious) feats:

• He argued as Deputy Solicitor-General that Roe v Wade should be overturned.
  
• He did things in a similar vein back then during his stint with the Justice Department during the Reagan Administration, promoting bills in Congress to eliminate the Supreme Court's jurisdiction on abortion, school busing and school prayer; considering he's still a Republican now, this guy seems dyed-in-the-wool;
  
• He also argued to limit the interpretation of the Anti Gender Discrimination Law in College Sports, known as Title 9;
  
• In memos to the Justice Department, he argued for restrictions on a suspect's right to have an attorney present while being questioned by authorities;
  ('K. Take a sec. Just in case Mr.John Roberts' swiping at Roe vs. Wade with an axe didn't (at the very least START to) scare the living shit out of you... see what you just saw there? That's Mr.Roberts swiping away at your habeas corpus.)
  
• He also called a lower court's ruling that a hearing-impaired student should be given a Sign-Language interpreter "judicial activism".
  ('K. So now basic human decency's being flamebroiled, exacerbated, distorted and thrown in with something that's obviouly a pet peeve of his, Activism. And, activism's BAD...??)
  

Assuming these feats are as they are when read in context... quite a heap o' feats to have when you're still in your twenties, eh?

Tiny little gems like this are the sort of things you find when people like The National Archives releases like oh, say, 15,000 pages detailing his stint with the Justice Department under the Reagan Administration.

'K. On getting technical, and the details of Roe v Wade: no matter what your opinions on the effiacy of (the present state of?) Roe vs Wade, the legal system may be a mechanism, or a living, breathing thing; but its lifeblood is still the human being. And I do not have so steadfast a faith in human nature that something that took centuries, and blood and tears, to get in, would be replaced, with something better even, when taken out.

I mean. Are YOU?

Senate Democrats are demanding that documents detailing his stint as Deputy Solicitor-General,including Robert's tax returns, be released as well (...Ya THINK...?!?!)


And this is the track record of a "Moderate" Republican.(quotes for those like me who find that an oxymoron). The person Miss Snow spoke so highly of. For me her Moderate Republican status seems to be a matter of perspective, even if right now she's pro-choice.

Oh yeah, by the way. Seems the White House said no to the seeing of documents detailing his stint as Solicitor-General. They claimed client-attorney priveleges. Which, considering that the client was the American people, is sort of a bit thin.

Okay. Try to con the American public into thinking you're not trying to fast-track someone into a key position of power who will strong-arm your agenda into law, dismantling basic human rights...

Someone in a position like this, I would consider his personal, judicial and legal background. You can't go say "Yo, ta da-da da-da. And no, the fact he put a flaming cross on someone's backyard when he was 18 has no bearing on the fact he's a judge in Mississipi." This guy can exercise his personal discretion, and manifest it into concrete law. You're gonna hire a dodgy contractor who'll make a contorted shambles of your placee, only to have to go out and hire yet ANOTHER contractor to fix up yer delapidated house? While you're living IN it? I'd take the time to find a good contractor, who won't screw you, in the first place.

This ain't the local lottery or Las Vegas gambling. This is serious shit. Stuff this guy can do to the foundation of the functioning of society, not to mention the rule of law, is exponentially way worse than anything George Bush can represent.

Unless you thought ahead and realised that this sort of guy getting into office IS what having someone like George Bush represents. But that's like crying over spilt milk at this point. The milk's done on the ground, and done spoiled.

Sop it up and make sure you don't spill the life-giving mother's milk you got left.

Considering how people seemed to have bought the reason for the "Iraq occupation", perhaps they're right into thinking they'll succeed...

Here's a possibly even worse thought, presented by my pal, Cameron..."I'm scared that he is a tactical move. Where by Bush can say, "Look I gave you a moderate. Now give me Gonzalas." He's not happy with the fact the "abortion people backed off" because they "felt that Gonzalas was not right enough".

I almost agreed with him... almost.

Then I got over the frothing-at-the-mouth Pavlov's response triggered by the name. The abortion people were right, Gonzalas *is* smoke & mirrors, a distraction. Don't think in mouse-height terms, think in human-height terms. In the heirarchy of things, Gonzalas is the thug. Someone like Roberts, however, could be the sort of right-hand man the second in command might have lurking behind him, and when he needs something done, only has to turn around slightly and utter one word, so in tune the lurker is. Don't think of Roberts in terms of a person; in my opinion, his role is way beyond that. Think of him as a cog, a key piece of machinery, a means to an end. Roberts is the quiet, under-reported, but far and away, exponentially more damaging, white-collar crook, to Gonzalas' over-exposed, two-timing thug's ass in COPS. He's the sound and the fury. Roberts is the lightning.

(Assuming Gonzalas'own record doesn't rival, or dwarf, his.)

Or in even simpler terms. If Gonzalas is The Thing, Roberts is a being in the same vein as Dr. Doom. Or worse yet, that second-in-command, standing right outside the crate of his master, knowing, when the unsuspecting boatman's panel flickers, his master, and his master's bidding, lies alive and waiting within.

'K. Shutting up.