Will Miers Reign Supreme and Go Contra to the Constitution
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NAME
Harriet Ellan Miers
AGE
60, born in Dallas
EDUCATION
B.S., Southern Methodist University, 1967; J.D., Southern Methodist
University School of Law, 1970
EXPERIENCE
2004-present, White House counsel; 2003-2004, White House deputy chief
of staff for policy; 2001-2003, White House staff secretary; 1995-2001,
chairwoman, Texas Lottery Commission; 1972-2000, private law practice;
1992, president, Dallas Bar Association; 1989-1991, member, Dallas
City Council; 1985, president, Dallas Bar Association
FAMILY
Single, no children
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10.05.05 - When you're on the Supreme Court and you're making
decisions, you make decisions based on the Constitution and based on the law and
then you apply that law. "I think Miers is a born again Christian and her
reign on the Supreme Court will reflect that attitude in contra to the Constitution",
said Joe Redner.
President
Bush has said he does not know her (Miers) principles or beliefs on abortion,
religion etc. ad naseum. It's inconceivable to me that he doesn't know her
conservative principles intimately given that he has known her since before
he was Governor of Texas. Since she was his personal lawyer, since she was
his Staff Secretary when he first came into office, since she was also Deputy
Chief of Staff and "recently" promoted to White House Counsel six
months ago.
| To persuade
the right to embrace Miers' selection despite her lack of a clear record
on social issues, representatives of the White House put Hecht on at
least one conference call with influential social conservative organizers
Monday to talk about her faith and character. |
|
"She decided that she wanted faith to be
a bigger part of her life," Hecht, (former coworker of Miers'
at law firm Locke Purnell Boren Laney & Neely) who now serves
on the Texas Supreme Court, said in an interview. "One evening,
she called me to her office and said she was ready to make a commitment"
to accept Jesus Christ as her savior and be born again. He walked
down the hallway from his office to hers, and there amid the legal
briefs and court papers, Miers and Hecht "prayed and talked,"
he said.
She was baptized not long after that at the
Valley View Christian Church. It
was a pivotal personal transformation for the woman now named for
a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court. Miers, born Roman Catholic, became
an evangelical Christian and began identifying more with the Republican
Party than with the Democrats, who had long held sway over Texas politics.
She joined the missions committee of her church, which is decidedly
against legalized abortion, and friends and colleagues say she rarely
looked back at her past as a Democrat.
A close relationship with Hecht -- also a longtime
member of Valley View -- who frequently appears with Miers at social
functions in Washington and in Texas, has been a steady feature of
her life for nearly 30 years. Hecht is known as one of the most conservative
members of the Republican-dominated Texas Supreme Court.
Newspapers in Texas have reported that Hecht
and Miers were romantically involved, and when asked in an interview
whether that was still the case, Hecht responded that they were close,
without going into great detail.
"She works in Washington; I work in Austin,"
Hecht said. "We have dinner when she's here; if she invites me
to Washington, I happily go. We talk on the phone all the time."
Hect said he had never asked Miers how she would vote
on the issue of abortion if it came before the Supreme Court. "She
probably wouldn't answer; she wouldn't view it as appropriate,"
he said.
"Yes, she goes to a pro-life church," Hecht
said, adding, "I know Harriet is, too." The two attended
"two or three" anti-abortion fundraising dinners in the
early 1990s, he said, but added she had not otherwise been active
in the antiabortion movement. "You can be just as pro-life as
the day is long and can decide the Constitution requires Roe"
to be upheld, he said.
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| Religion appears to have influenced
her views on certain subjects. In a discussion with her campaign manager
in 1989, Miers said she had been in favor in her younger years of a woman's
right to have an abortion, but her views evolved against abortion, influenced
largely by her born-again religious beliefs, said Lorlee Bartos, a Democratic
campaign consultant in Dallas who managed Miers' first City Council campaign.
"She was someone whose view had shifted, and she explained that
to me," said Bartos. |
Miers' nomination is a sign of just how politicized judicial selection
has become. Bush put his
own lawyer on the Supreme Court. That's definitional, cronyism. The
normal model for a Supreme Court nominee is a judge, usually from a federal
appeals court, who has served long enough to develop and demonstrate judicial
excellence. But today, anyone who meets that standard runs into a political
Catch-22. The far right of the Republican Party will oppose anyone who has
shown signs of moderation, and Senate Democrats will try to block anyone who
has not. Rather than select a strongly qualified candidate from the legal mainstream,
Bush has taken the easy way out by choosing a less accomplished nominee who
will raise fewer political problems.
Harriet Miers is a skilled lawyer who has worked on behalf of
big business, including Microsoft and Disney
and was a city councilwoman in Dallas . But her main qualification for
a U.S. Supreme Court seat appears to be her loyal service to George W. Bush,
beginning in 1993. The initial professional meeting between Bush and Miers,
in September or October of 1993, proved pivotal for both, giving Bush's campaign
for Texas Governor a boost among women and Miers' career a push into partisan
Republican politics. That was certainly in evidence in 1998, when Bush was
running for re-election as Texas governor while considering a run for president,
and paid her $19,000 to run an internal probe of any possible trouble lurking
in Bush's National Guard service. She
also served as a state official on the Texas Lottery Commission 1995 (an appointment
by newly elected, Gov. Bush, are you surprised?)
Scott McCelleland said in a Whitehouse Briefing in answer to what
are Miers' qualifications that, "She
started as the Staff Secretary for the President when he first came into office.
Then she became the Deputy Chief of Staff. And then, just about six/seven months
ago, the President named her his White House Counsel. So she's been very involved
in policy matters here at the White House. That was part of her role, and that's
one of her strengths, is that she has served within the administration at some
of the highest levels of government."
At this point,
I'm not so sure that serving at some of the highest levels of government in
"this" administration is a recommendation.
Considering
the emphasis President Bush has put on changing the court, her involvement
in that cause, and his personal knowledge of her philosophy, I have no doubt
that she will be voting with Scalia and Thomas. What will the court be considering
this term?
| The court has already granted review
in 48 cases, enough to fill the new term's argument calendar into February.
The list includes cases likely to produce vigorous debates among the
justices, leading to decisions that may help to define the Roberts Court.
Abortion, religion, free speech, the death penalty and federalism are
among the subjects at hand. The court's announcement on Tuesday that
it was adding two campaign finance issues to the calendar raised the
temperature of the new term considerably. |
With issues such as abortion, religion, and campaign finance on
the court's docket, it's quite possible, even likely, that Harriet Miers' replacement
of O'Connor will result in an immediate shift to the right from our highest
court on key conservative issues this term. We may have a Judicial Activist
on the Supreme Court in time. An Activist Judge takes away the power of the
people to impact their own laws.
Some conservatives appear
to be less than thrilled with Bush's nomination. One noted conservative columnist
said that he had expected the President to pick someone with a visible and
distinguished constitutionalist track record -- a suggestion that the President
flinched from a fight on constitutional philosophy, that this appears to be
a combination of cronyism and capitulation on the part of the President.
On Meet the Press on November 21, 1999, host Tim Russert had asked
Bush, “Which Supreme Court justice do you really respect?” He replied,
“Well, that’s―Antonin Scalia is one. He's an intellect. The
reason I like him so much is I got to know him here in Austin when he came
down. He's witty. He’s interesting. He's firm. There’s a lot of
reasons why I like Judge Scalia. And I like a lot of the other judges as well.
I mean, it's kind of a harsh question to ask because it now pits me―some
of whom are friends of mine.
In effect, Bush led the public to believe that he would pick someone
qualified, with a track record, to serve as Supreme Court justice.
Russert asked, “Do you believe Clarence Thomas was the most
qualified man in the country for the Supreme Court?” Bush replied, “I
do, and I think he's proven my dad correct.
Other Snippets found on the Web:
Powerline says, “I’m sure that she is a capable lawyer
and a loyal aide to President Bush. But the bottom line is that he had a number
of great candidates to choose from, and instead of picking one of them―Luttig,
McConnell, Brown, or a number of others―he nominated someone whose only
obvious qualification is her relationship with him.
Right-wing News says, “Miers is a Bush crony with no real
conservative credentials, who leapfrogged legions of more deserving judges
just because she was Bush’s pal… This is undoubtedly the worst
decision of Bush’s entire presidency so far.
Anonymous: Her husband is
a wealthy Texan, oil man
On the other hand, Hugh Hewitt supports her. “I trust him
[Bush]. So should his supporters.
Ken Hughes: I have faith in the President's choices, I have faith
in the construction, I have faith in the Great State of Texas and it’s
sons and daughters to do the right thing for America. God Bless Us.
Evangelist James Dobson: Dobson told The New York Times he supported
her because of her religious faith and because he has reason to believe she
opposes abortion. "Some of what I know I am not at liberty to talk about,"
he told the newspaper.
Swelyn Duke: Now, I'll concede that the President might know something
that we don't, because he knows the woman and we don't. But since it has become
painfully obvious that we know a lot that he doesn't, I feel none too sanguine.
After all, Bush doesn't know enough to stop the budget from growing to unprecedented
proportions, close down the borders, defend the primacy of English or realize
that Islam is a religion of peace like it's a religion of pork. But let's look
at what we do know.
Molly Ivins: Miers, like Bush himself, is classic Texas conservative
Establishment, with the addition of Christian fundamentalism. What I mean by
fundamentalist is one who believes in both biblical inerrancy and salvation
by faith alone.
Question to Scott McClelland
White House Briefer: Can we assume that -- that she had a big, strong hand
in the policies that we've watched over the -- since 2001?
Answer: Well, she's been
very involved in the policy process here. She's been a senior member of the
President's White House staff.
Q On treatment of
the prisoners of war, for example?
MR. McCLELLAN (spins to
cover): Well, the General Counsel of the White House during the time you're
referring to was Justice -- was Judge Gonzales, or Attorney General Gonzales.
The standard that we should
look at, April, is qualifications. That has been the precedent, and certainly
in recent history, is what are the person's qualifications. Are they qualified
to serve on the highest court? Do they have the kind of background and experience
and judicial temperament to represent the American people well on the United
States Supreme Court? Harriet Miers is someone who will make the American people
very proud. She has the kind of experience that is needed on the United States
Supreme Court.
And so I encourage you to look
at her record.
Q But how many people did
he interview this time? (for Supreme Court Justice)
MR. McCLELLAN:
Well, I don't think you can separate out the first
nominating process from this nominating process. He interviewed a
number
of people previously. The committee that was involved has interviewed a
number of people, as well. And --
Q You don't have
the number of how many he sat down with?
MR. McCLELLAN: He interviewed
five the first time, and he interviewed some additional ones this time.
Q How many?
MR. McCLELLAN: I'd leave
it at that.