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After Miers, who? If at First You Do Succeed...By Rick Horowitz
WASHINGTON, Momentarily -- Moving quickly to recover from the sudden withdrawal of Harriet Miers as his nominee for the United States Supreme Court, President Bush today announced that he had chosen John Roberts to replace her. The announcement, which came this morning at a hastily called news conference in the White House Rose Garden, sent official Washington -- already on edge over the latest developments in the CIA leak inquiry -- into an unofficial tizzy. If confirmed by the Senate, Roberts, who took his seat as the high court's chief justice only weeks ago, would also succeed retiring associate justice Sandra Day O'Connor. This would be the first time, court historians believe, that any individual had simultaneously filled two seats on the court. For a beleaguered president, however, the unusual nature of the choice seemed far less important than the chance to put the Miers fiasco quickly behind him. "The American people need a Supreme Court that is fully staffed and fully functioning," the president declared. "And they know that John Roberts is up to the job." The president called on the Senate to act quickly in considering the latest Roberts nomination. "They're already well aware of this man's fantastic talents," the president said. "So there shouldn't be any reason to delay confirming him." A spokesman for the court said that "of course" the chief justice was "flattered" by the president's confidence in him, but that Roberts himself would have no immediate comment. White House strategists, on the other hand, were eager to talk, and eager to cast the president's decision in a positive light. "The biggest problem Harriet had," said a senior official, speaking anonymously to permit him to comment candidly, "was John Roberts. Everything she did, people said it wasn't as good as John Roberts. Everything she wrote, it wasn't as good as John Roberts. Her background, her credentials -- the whole nine yards. John Roberts became the gold standard, and Harriet just didn't measure up." So, the official explained, when the White House felt obliged to pull the plug on Miers, "The logical choice was John Roberts. Again." Another Republican strategist, meanwhile, put the choice in more starkly political terms. "We know he's got the votes [for confirmation]," the strategist explained. "He had 78 votes the first time around, and he looks even better now. And the president needs a win." The initial reaction from Capitol Hill was one of confusion, with traces of relief. Only hours earlier, members of the Senate Judiciary Committee had been steeling themselves for what promised to be a long and uncomfortable confirmation hearing, as Miers' courtesy calls and questionnaire responses had failed to gain increased support among either Republicans or Democrats. The need to explore Miers' judicial philosophy in far greater depth than anything she had yet revealed clashed with senators' reluctance to be seen as beating up on a gracious and soft-spoken woman who was, in addition, a close friend of the president. That the friendship would leave both Miers and the president vulnerable to charges of "cronyism" was something the White House had either failed to anticipate, or refused to take seriously. The result was a major embarrassment for an administration already suffering more than its share of setbacks in recent months. With uncertain progress in Iraq and continuing criticism of its response to natural disasters here at home -- not to mention the worrisome attentions of a special prosecutor -- the original John Roberts nomination must have seemed like an oasis of success in a sea of troubles. Viewed in that light, it's not surprising that the White House would try to capture magic in a bottle a second time. And it might not be the last time. "John Roberts has enough brainpower for two people, or even three," said the president at his news conference. "Maybe I can get him to run FEMA, too." Posted 10/27/05.
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Rick Horowitz
