Fight on the Right

The Conservative wing of politics is in a meltdown. Or so many giddy pundits on the left are saying today. I suppose this is because those on the right have had so few of these tilts over the past few decades.

I don't think we are in any kind of melt down. What we are having here is good, honest debate, and there are times when tensions have to rise before the seriousness of the topic matter can be appreciated.

Those that are in disagreement here on the right are arguing over Harriet Miers for sure, but Ms. Miers is more symbolic of a larger disagreement on political tactics. I was not thrilled when Miers was nominated because backing into a room while apologizing is not the way to make an impressive entrance. I wanted a frontal assault with guns ablaze.

The biggest problem that I see with this pick is not that I think Harriet Miers will not vote conservatively, because I think that she will. I think she will be solidly conservative and will become of a solidly conservative voting bloc that might well sit on this court for the next 15 years. This is a huge positive.

However, with dozens of proven conservatives with well established track records available to Mr. Bush for nomination, we could have done better than Harriet Miers. It is time for conservatives in power to remember that there should be no such thing as an embarrassed conservative. Ronald Reagan wielded his conservatism with pride and as a result the conservatives were rejuvenated and a conservative momentum developed. Ronald Reagan would have relished the thought of nominating a staunchly conservative person to the Supreme Court given a majority in the Senate--a majority that, unlike President Bush, he did not enjoy.

Now we have some sniping back and forth among conservatives and the Democrats couldn't be happier about it. However, the last thing the Democrats want is for this argument to be resolved in a way that strengthens the conservatives.

Dipstick Senator Harry Reid knows that he will not be able to block Harriet Miers. He also knows that he will not be able to defeat whomever the President picks should Miers withdraw or be withdrawn. Harry is not particularly bright but even a cockroach will flee a flame once the antennae start to smoke.

The worst thing that could happen to Harry and the Democrats would be for vocal conservatives to succeed and get this nomination derailed. If this occurs you can bet that the next nomination will have the same conservative leanings that Miers has, but that this nominee will come labeled with all the ingredients in plain sight. That would force Harry into a fight that he knows he cannot win.

So, the argument over tactics continues and the eventual winner is not known. I'm hoping that when the smoke clears it will have been the smoke from blazing guns as well as the antennae of a cockroach or two.