Harriet Miers: She Should Have "Just Said No"

Article III Groupie is still figuring out how she feels about the nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court. A3G was fairly negative at first. But as she's been surfing through the blogosphere, she has come across a few more positive assessments -- mixed in, of course, with lots of negative ones, such as this exceedingly persuasive piece by David Frum. (Gavel bang: Todd Zywicki, who also had this interesting analysis.)

Even if Article 3 Groupie ultimately comes around to supporting the Miers nomination, overcoming A3G's admitted "Harvard-Yale-Supreme Court clerk-elite D.C. legal insider" bias (for which she won't apologize), she can't help wishing that Miers had simply declined to be considered for the Supreme Court. If Harriet Miers had "just said no" to President Bush, we all wouldn't find ourselves in such a conflicted state.

In response to this post, in which A3G wondered why anyone would ever take himself out of the running for a Supreme Court spot, a UTR source recently informed A3G: "Miguel Estrada was invited by the President to interview for the SOC slot the first go-round, but politely declined."* Similarly, Judge Priscilla Owen (5th Cir.) recently removed herself from SCOTUS consideration.

So why couldn't Harriet Miers have done the same thing? If Miers is such a savvy politician and wise counsellor to President Bush, shouldn't she have foreseen all the trouble that her nomination would create -- the frustration of his conservative base, the accusations of post-Katrina cronyism, and the questions over her qualifications? (And might Harriet Miers be persuaded even now to withdraw her nomination?)

Please note: A3G has not made up her mind about Justice Harriet Miers. As she stated at the start of this post, right now she's agnostic. All of this is just to say that A3G doesn't like feeling confused, which is her current state...**

* We might have been spared all this aggravation if the Kid from Tegucigalpa -- manifestly brilliant, impeccably credentialed, solidly conservative, and muy Latino -- had left his name on the short-list. Although Estrada's decision to withdraw himself from the process was understandable (for the reasons identified in this comment by "Hispanic Clerk"), it was still highly unfortunate for the Court and the country.

** O.k., fine, she'll admit it: A3G is probably a little frustrated that President Bush didn't pick a fabulous federal judge, especially a judge featured prominently in the pages of this blog.

Comments

[Withdraw Harriet Miers!!!]

Hey, maybe we can get a petition going in favor of withdrawal of the Harriet Miers nomination. C'mon, guys, let's get a chant going: "Withdraw Harriet Miers! Withdraw Harriet Miers! Withdraw Harriet Miers!"

If she is a classy person, Harriet Miers will withdraw her own name, without anyone having to put pressure on the White House to do so.

Does anyone else feel the need for another "in defense of mediocrity" speech...

[A Skeptic]

Come on, A3G, get real: Would YOU have turned down a Supreme Court nomination?

So, when do the rumours about her sexuality begin: a single, childless, sixty-years old woman. I no little about her, or her sexuality (though, if she were gay, my views about her might become a bit more positive).