A Tyranny of 14
By Leon H Wolf Posted in User Blogs — Comments (10) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
Thanks, John McCain. Thanks for showing us that there really are worse things than allowing 45 Senators to control a body of 100. We could, for instance, have 14 Senators control a body of 100, which is exactly what we saw happen tonight with the "compromise" solution authored and championed by everymedia's favorite "Maverick." Forgive us if we're less than thrilled at the prospect that this "centrist" coalition (including Robert Byrd, of all people!) wields so much power.
For all the things that might justifiably be said about John McCain, one can certainly never accuse him of being stupid. McCain has certainly understood throughout the process that while Owens and Brown would certainly make fine additions to the circuit courts of our nation, they have never been the issue. The control of consent by the minority has been the issue from the very beginning.
I am afraid that we have been led into yet another trap by media-cult-of-personality McCain on this. At some point in the game, McCain had to realize that he simply wasn't getting enough people to go along with him to vote "no" on the Byrd Option, and so he instead decided that it would be infinitely more cunning of him to kill the Byrd Option with a compromise. It's not as good as being the leader of a "Maverick Caucus" of 7, but it's almost as good, by God. Notice how carefully this has all been orchestrated. Earlier in the evening, reports were circulating that an emergency meeting was taking place in *gasp* the offices of John McCain. When the deal was announced, it was McCain striding confidently to the head of the pack with deal in hand.
The effect of this compromise has been simple. Before, we had to go get the approval of Harry Reid at the head of 45 Democrats to get a nominee pushed through. Now, we have to go get the approval of John McCain at the head of 14 "centrists" (this is a euphemism for "Democrats", including those who have not yet realized which party they belong to).
Everybody gets screwed on this deal. Reid gets screwed because clearly McCain can garner the cloture votes over Reid's objections. Frist gets screwed because he's effectively handed over the GOP leadership position on judges over to McCain by accepting this compromise. Now, the party leaders from either side must come crawling to McCain's door for permission in fear that whatever public position they take, McCain can assemble his crack coalition behind closed doors and wash away four years worth of party discipline. Everybody gets screwed except - as usual - John McCain, who has created for himself automatic media spotlight during all future nominations, as reporters go to the real source of Senate power to find out whether the nominee will get through. Given that the upcoming SCOTUS fights are sure to be the most politically charged and publicized fights since the election aftermath of 2000, McCain has somehow managed to create more of a media frenzy upon himself than he had before.
Unless you intended to send a party run by John McCain into control of the Senate, it's time to pick up the chant again. Not. One. Dime. Not until this party re-learns the meaning of party discipline on the issues that matter to us the most. Not. One. Dime. Not until a Majority Leader arises with the courage and tenacity to face down McCain and the MSM and do the right thing.
Not. One. Dime. Not until the tyranny of the 14 has ended.
I really hope this kills any McCain '08 presidential ambitions. I'd much rather have, say, Ben Stein as president than McCain.
Welcome to the base, Senator McCain. It's going to fall on you like the ol' 16-ton weight from Monty Python as soon as your presidential campaign begins, if not before.
I really hope this kills any McCain '08 presidential ambitions.
McCain is just so blinded by his own ego that he hasn't realized it. He has fallen victim to the fallacy of believing that if the media loves him, so will rank and file Republicans. If he runs in '08 (even before this debacle), he gets less votes than he did in '00, when he was basically a nobody.
The campaign against McCain must be taken a step further. I maintain that he's more destructive in his current sway than a freshman Democrat, who holds no ability to coerce promises out of squishy Republican Senators in secret closed-door meetings.
I voted for the Libertarian Ernest Hancock as a protest vote against McCain, and I feel this justifies my decision. I do appreciate McCain's campaigning for Bush in a certain sense, but in another I know in my heart it was all for McCain to get more media exposure to massage his ego, and MachoNachos, your analysis is right on the money. McCain is out for personal attention, and he doesn't care at all if his party's interests are hurt in the process.
I would also like to take his opportunity to point out what a great Senator I think John Kyl is, who spoke in Brophy's (my school's) gymnasium in October and touched on the topic of judicial nominations, defending the constitutional option even at that early date. He is also ardently pro-life. With McCain hogging the spotlight, he unfortunately doesn't get a lot of attention. However, when McCain vacates his seat, he is the standard Arizona conservatives should hold McCain's replacement up to.
and Kudos on this site of late for his actions in the current judicial fiasco - I shall have to pay closer attention to him in the future.
. . .a direct Latin equivalent for "a group of fourteen" that we could use--with the appropriate rhetorical flourishes--for appropriately deriding this bunch of jokers?
While MachoNachos and others bemoan McCain and others, I have to point out that the vast majority of the American public agree with neither the uber Right or the uber Left on vast majority of issues which seem near and dear to social conservatives.
I ran across a good article by Howard Fineman on MSNBC which summarizes my thinking as a self admitted Nelson Rockefeller Republican.
. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7967628/
I think he hits the issues right on the button.
"A generation ago, voters turned against the Democrats for the excesses of their welfare-state, big-government thinking. Washington WASN'T the answer to everything.
But, voters may conclude, the Bible isn't either. They could turn against the GOP if they think the party is sacrificing the American tradition of pragmatism and respect for scientific progress - on, say, stem-cell research - in favor of religious fundamentalism, however sincere."
I voted for Arnold, I'd vote for McCain or Rudy, but will never someone that panders to an uber Right, all or nothing position on social issues.
there isn't really. The word in Latin would be quattuordecimviri, which would come into English as probably quattuordecimvirate. Doesn't have much of a ring to it, does it?
Will you please edit the title of this post to say "A tyranny of 14"? Also, if you could change the "12" in paragraph 4 to 14, I would appreciate that as well. Thanks.