Page 2Current Events
On October 3, 2005, President Bushnominated Harriet Miers to replace SupremeCourt Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. O’Connor,appointed to the Court by Ronald Reagan in1981, has provided a key swing vote on manycases. She announced her decision to retire ear-lier this year. The President’s selection of Miers to replace O’Connor has caused concernamong both liberals and conservatives becauseso little is known about her position onConstitutional and social issues.One source of apprehension among crit-ics of the nominee is her lack of judicial expe-rience. Ms. Miers is a reputable lawyer whoheaded the Texas Bar Association from 1992-93, but has never served as a judge on any courtor argued any cases before the Supreme Court.In contrast, Bush’s previous nominee for theposition, John Roberts (now confirmed as Chief Justice), had served on the District of ColumbiaCourt of Appeals and has argued thirty-ninecases before the Supreme Court. Although forty-one previous Justices have been appointed with-out prior experience as judges, it is seen asespecially negative in this case. Without arecord of judicial rulings, it is difficult todetermine where Miers stands on issues thatmay come before the Court during her term, andwhether she would shift the Court to the right.For a nominee replacing a Justice as importantas O’Connor, a moderate who often cast thedeciding vote in controversial cases, this lack of information could be very damaging. Miers’supporters cast her outsider status in a differ-ent light. Republican Ohio Senator MikeDeWine (said he found her lack of experience asa judge “refreshing.” Senate leaders consultedbefore the nomination urged the President toselect someone from outside the appellate courtsystem.Criticism also stems from the nominee’sclose relationship to President Bush. Miers hasknown Bush since the 1980s, and first workedfor him in 1994 as general counsel of the tran-sition team for his Texas governorship. Afterthe transition she became his personal lawyer.Bush also appointed her as Texas LotteryCommission chair in 1995, Assistant to thePresident and Staff Secretary in 2001, DeputyChief of Staff for Policy in 2003, and WhiteHouse Counsel the following year. Miers is oneof Bush’s closest friends, and has described himas “the most brilliant man I have ever met.” Shehas contributed a total of $31, 960 dollars toadvancing his political career in both hisgubernatorial and Presidential elections. Theseconnections lead some to doubt whether shewould act as a truly independent voice on theCourt, or simply a rubber stamp for thePresident’s policies.The President has encouraged Congressand the American people to trust him on Miers’nomination, saying “I know her character, she’sa woman of principle and deep conviction.” Heclaimed that her judicial philosophy would bethe same in 20 years as it is now. Miers, who ismore moderate than Bush, was appointed afterconsulting with leaders from both theRepublicans and Democrats in Congress. She hasdrawn criticism from some on the right for notbeing conservative enough. For example, thenominee assured Democratic Senator Pat Leahythat she had “absolutely not” authorized anyoneto say she would oppose legalized abortion(although she did campaign to have theAmerican Bar Association drop its pro-choicestance). Others, such as Republican KansasSenator Sam Brownback (are wary of Bush’srequest for trust, remembering his father’sappointment of Justice Souter, who had a simi-larly sparse judicial record and turned outmore liberal than his Republican sponsors hadhoped. They counter the President’s “20 years”claim by pointing out that 20 years ago, beforeshe became a born-again Christian, she was aconservative Democrat. Miers even contributedto Al Gore’s 1988 Presidential campaign.Despite these concerns, Harriet Miershas garnered some support. Her conservativesupporters include Texas Senator John Cornyn,the Christian Coalition, and the National Rightto Life Committee. Democratic Senator HarryReid of Nevada, was one of the leaders Bush con-sulted before nominating Miers. Shortly afterthe decision was announced, he supported her,stating “I’m very happy that we have someonelike her.” However, his later comments are morecautious. On Thursday he commented that“We’re going to wait and see, learn more aboutHarriet Miers.”This wait-and-see approach seems to bethe consensus among most Democrats. HowardDean, chairman of the Democratic NationalCommittee, said “We know almost nothing abouther. And we have a lot of questions to beanswered before she gets a lifetime appointment… We don’t know Ms. Miers. I’ve always believedpeople ought to begin with the benefit of thedoubt.” Decisions on Miers’ suitability for theSupreme Court will not be made until moreinformation about her becomes available. Whenasked if President Bush could use executiveprivilege to prevent the release of some of Harriet Miers’ documents, Dean replied“Certainly the President can claim executiveprivilege. But in this case, I think with a life-time appointment to the Supreme Court, youcan’t play, you know, hide the salami, or what-ever it’s called. He’s got to go out there and saysomething about this woman who’s going to atwenty or thirty year appointment … to influ-ence America. We deserve to know somethingabout her.”Miers’ confirmation hearings have notyet been scheduled, but Republican leaders saidprior to the nomination that they hoped to havea Justice confirmed before Thanksgiving.Sandra Day O’Connor will continue to hold herplace on the Court until a replacement is con-firmed.
The Mysterious Harriet Miers
ByAlexWalsh
HARRIET MIERS; FRIGHTENING, ISN’T IT?Courtesy of da government
October, the month of pink ribbons andthe fight for breast cancer. That’s right, it’sBreast Cancer Awareness month. For those of you who have never lost a loved one or friend tothis disease, consider yourself lucky. To therest, like me, who’ve experienced the pain of loss, or are dealing with someone they hold dearto their heart who suffers from this chronic ill-ness, it’s our month to help.According to The American CancerSociety, in the year 2003, over two hundredthousand women, and over a thousand menlearned that they had Breast Cancer. Over fortythousand are expected to die from this disease.My mother already has.I know what you’re thinking. You’rethinking that you’re a college student and youcan’t afford to donate money to this cause.That’s ok, not everyone can. But that doesn’tmeanyou should just ignore the statistics.Making Strides is a noncompetitive walk to raise awareness and funds to fight BreastCancer. On October 16th, and 17th, MakingStrides will hold these noncompetitive eventseverywhere, including at Jones Beach StatePark. Won’t be on Long Island for the weekend?Not a problem. They are being held all over thecity, including Central Park, and out of the city.Won’t be in city? There are also parks in NewJersey and Connecticut holding this same eventfor the same cause. So now you know, and nowyou have no excuse.If walking for two days, and donatingmoney isn’t enough for you, there is always thepink ribbon you can wear for this month.Believe it or not, wearing this little ribbon isway to spread awareness, because knowing ishalf the battle.For more information on Making Strides,or donating to a local American Cancer Societyoffice, or about the pink ribbon, you can visittheir website at www.cancer.org.
Walk for Breast Cancer
ByYveKoon
THE REASON FOR MY FIGHT AGAINST BREAST CANCER,Courtesy of Yve Koon
American Cancer Societywww.cancer.org
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