e-commentary

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August 21, 2018

Senator LisA MurKowski

522 Hart Senate Office Building

Washington, D.C. 20510

Re:  Supreme Court nomination

Dear Senator Murkowski:

We can do better.

In a nation of over three hundred and twenty seven million (327,000,000) folks, we can uncover another candidate more representative of America and more likely to represent the interests and reflect the concerns of Americans.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh is a corporatist, not a true conservative.  At this time, the corporations are adequately represented on the Supreme Court.  The true conservatives are not.

A true conservative protects individual civil rights and civil liberties rather than institutional and corporate interests.  The unelected and unaccountable technological leviathans in particular are eviscerating individual interests and undermining privacy concerns.

A true conservative accepts the time-honored doctrine of stare decisis and respects decisions such as Roe v. Wade and others.  The Supreme Court recently held that “stare decisis promotes the evenhanded, predictable, and consistent development of legal principles, fosters reliance on judicial decisions, and contributes to the actual and perceived integrity of the judicial process.”

A true conservative respects the separation of powers and declines to address matters that should be addressed by a co-equal branch of government.  The Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) is based at least in part on Congress’s unambiguous ability and authority to tax.  That is enough heft to pass Constitutional muster and remove the matter from the court docket.  The legislation may be unwise and unsound and unworkable and uneconomical.  However, Congress – not the Supreme Court – can and should debate, discuss, challenge, defend, amend, repeal or replace the ACA.

At the hearings, the nominee takes the coy and disingenuous position that he or she cannot comment on matters that may come before the Court.  The nominee perforce should not speak about a specific case before the Court yet can, should and must discuss the general principles and doctrines that guide his or her thinking on matters that may come before the Court.  Challenge the nominee’s assertion of the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and require answers.  Too many candidates are sweet at their confirmation hearing and less charming when later conducting hearings on the bench.

Nominating another product and by-product of the Great East Coast Credential Factory is unimaginative, tiresome and shopworn.  The current hired help at the Court – on both sides of the political aisle – could have been manufactured at a McDonald’s® hamburger shop.  More of the same just results in more of the same.  The millions who need to be served deserve to be served something better.

What are the qualities of a qualified candidate?  Search for someone with intelligence, tutored intelligence, emotional intelligence, intellectual integrity, integrity, character, grit, courage, wisdom, humility, perspective, kindness, life experience, and a wry/dry/sly sense of humor (sans sarcasm).  And the abilities to shoot a gun, bait a hook, hike a trail and read a book.  And require a zip code outside the WaNeBos (Washington-New York-Boston) Corridor.  And search first out West (not Coast) and for heaven’s sake and ours leave all federal appellate court judges off the list.

A few years ago, the original vote card tallying the Senate vote on the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution that passed in 1964 was displayed at a National Archives exhibit down the street from your shop.  For all time, there are check marks under “No” next to Ernest Gruening’s name and next to Wayne Morse’s name.

Decisions have consequences, big and small.  This decision has consequences, enormous and staggering.

This promising Republic deserves better.

It is time for everyone to head back to the drawing board.

We can do better.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.  Best wishes.

. . .

[See the e-commentary at “Is Kavanaugh Qualified? (July 30, 2018)”.]

Bumper stickers of the week:

We can do better

KavaNaugh(t)

Happy Women’s Equality Day

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