Democratic Senators Show Cahones!
Republicans stopped Senate business for 39 straight hours to complain that Democrats are standing up to Bush on his right-wing judicial nominees. Here are the facts:
• The Senate has confirmed 168 of President Bush's judicial nominees.
• Democrats have filibustered just four of Bush's nominees because they hold extremist, ultraconservative views far outside the mainstream.
• Republicans blocked 63 of President Clinton's nominees to the federal bench.
• Republicans refused to give many of Clinton's nominees hearings at all, and even blocked some of them with anonymous holds from a single Republican Senator.
• The federal judiciary has fewer vacancies now than any time for the past 20 years.
This Republican publicity stunt is about one thing: packing the court with ultraconservative ideologues who will reverse decades of progress on civil rights, worker's rights, reproductive rights, environmental protections, and much more.
I'm glad the Democrats finally figured out this "backbone" stuff. If only more of these politicians would have asked the hard questions about this Iraq situation, maybe we could saved $160 billion, and the lives of many fine American soldiers.
Republicans stopped Senate business for 39 straight hours to complain that Democrats are standing up to Bush on his right-wing judicial nominees. Here are the facts:
• The Senate has confirmed 168 of President Bush's judicial nominees.
• Democrats have filibustered just four of Bush's nominees because they hold extremist, ultraconservative views far outside the mainstream.
• Republicans blocked 63 of President Clinton's nominees to the federal bench.
• Republicans refused to give many of Clinton's nominees hearings at all, and even blocked some of them with anonymous holds from a single Republican Senator.
• The federal judiciary has fewer vacancies now than any time for the past 20 years.
This Republican publicity stunt is about one thing: packing the court with ultraconservative ideologues who will reverse decades of progress on civil rights, worker's rights, reproductive rights, environmental protections, and much more.
I'm glad the Democrats finally figured out this "backbone" stuff. If only more of these politicians would have asked the hard questions about this Iraq situation, maybe we could saved $160 billion, and the lives of many fine American soldiers.