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Last week’s release of additional torture memos written by the Office of Legal Counsel should serve as a reminder that much work remains to be done as we return our government to functioning within the Constitution and international treaties. Particularly, because OLC was the focal point of perverting legal arguments to justify crimes against humanity, one of the highest priorities for Congress should be to return integrity to the leadership of OLC.
Dawn Johnsen is an outstanding choice to head OLC. She served in that role during part of the Clinton Administration and is an expert on Federalism and the separation of powers. She was a frequent and outspoken critic of the Bush OLC, never hesitating to point out the subversion of the Constitution that this group was carrying out.
Standing directly between Johnsen and confirmation, however, are Senators John Cornyn and Arlen Specter. As Christy Hardin Smith pointed out, Cornyn’s objection to Johnsen comes off as blatantly sexist, stating that she lacks the "requisite seriousness" for the position.
Monday evening, CQPolitics reported that Arlen Specter is still contemplating a filibuster against Johnsen’s confirmation:
Specter of Pennsylvania, the ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee, said Monday that he has not yet made up his mind on the nomination even after meeting privately with Johnsen. He did not state a position when the committee took up the nomination last month. When asked whether he would support a filibuster, Specter said, “That’s under consideration.”
After the Judiciary panel approved Johnsen’s nomination on a party-line vote, John Cornyn , R-Texas, said he would do everything he could to block her confirmation.
If Republicans filibuster Johnsen’s nomination, they can cite the recent precedent of Democrats blocking the confirmation of Steven G. Bradbury to head the OLC under Bush. But Bradbury led the OLC anyway, as its principal deputy assistant attorney general, a position that does not require Senate approval. He signed three of the four memorandums regarding detention and interrogation policy that the Justice Department released April 16.
Doesn’t it occur to Specter and Cornyn at all that the reason Bradbury wasn’t confirmed was because he produced garbage like the memos just released? Do they really want to be seen as leading the charge for "legal scholarship" such as the drivel produced by John Yoo? The OLC under George W. Bush will go down in history as the most intellectually corrupt and morally bankrupt government office ever, and these two upstanding Senators are leading the charge against cleaning up the mess.
The CQPolitics article suggests that Democrats have a plan if a filibuster does take place:
Democrats, meanwhile, have signaled that they would use any protracted floor debate on Johnsen’s nomination to revisit the Bush administration’s controversial counterterrorism policies.
Exteneded sessions in the Senate discussing the myriad mistakes made by the Bush Administration in its Great War on Terror would do the world a favor. I just hope Reid and the Democrats would have the courage to follow through on this threat.
Specter is contemplating his ridiculous filibuster activity because he suddenly is facing the prospect of a very right-wing primary challenger. Is it really appropriate for one Senator to hold the Constitution hostage as a cold political calculation for his own future? Were the Republican cries of "Country First" last fall just empty campaign rhetoric?
Cornyn’s opposition is simply because he is just too dim to realize the damage his party has done to the Constitution and the rule of law.
Please call these Senators today and let them know that it is time to stop their partisan blockade and to allow the highly qualified Dawn Johnsen to get to work cleaning up the mess they have made of our government.
Specter: (202) 224-4254
Cornyn: (202) 224-2934
15 Comments
I managed to get through to “Tyler” in legislative affairs in Cornyn’s office. I talked with him for about 10 minutes about Cornyn’s opposition to Johnsen. I asked if an apology would be coming for the sexist remark about “seriousness” and he said no. I asked what the real basis is for Cornyn’s opposition to Johnsen and he said it was because Johnsen is especially partisan. I countered that Johnsen has already said that her loyalty is to the Constitution and the rule of law and that she would stand up to the President if he asked her to produce an opinion in opposition to the Constitution. His response was that she can say anything now but we would need to see her actions. I warned that Accountability Now has a significant advertising budget that could be used to point out the horrible position Cornyn is taking on this issue.
I talked only to the person who answered the phone in Specter’s office and told them I was outraged that Specter would contemplate the filibuster just because he may face a conservative primary challenger.
I spoke with “Tyler” yesterday, as well. He finally stated that Cornyn thinks it “is important to get nominees through” the process, but would not elaborate on the senator’s opposition to Ms Johnsen other than to say he has “serious problems” with her qualifications.
Personally, I have greater concerns about Cornyn’s qualifications…
Thank you for your efforts, Jim, and for passing on the results to us. I’m also a Texan and have despaired of Cornyn’s conduct in the senate. All I get back are form letters and parrot-talk. I replied to one of them and told him he insulted my intelligence. He didn’t respond.
How do we get through to a stonewall like him? I googled for his campaign contributors: Harold Simmons of CONTRAN (google him!)- Bush’s sugar daddy, the Bass Brothers, and the oil and gas guys.
I don’t think the vote threat will impress him. He took Rove to El Paso during last campaign…and there were questions about some of the Diebold machines used in Texas. Wonder who replaced the deceased Connell as Rove’s computer guru?
It’s Dawn Johnsons’s loyalty to the Constitution and Law that they’re afraid of. Very afraid if Cheney’s reaction yesterday to the memo release is a gauge.
Thanks for that contributor info. It probably wouldn’t hurt (but as we both know, won’t help much either) for you to call again today if you can.
Since I live in Florida, I called Bill Nelson’s office. I asked for Senator Nelson to get involved in breaking the logjam. Since he is friends with Specter, I asked if he could get word to Specter that supporting a filibuster on Johnsen would be a very big mistake.
Having that extended debate only as an antidote to a filibuster over a senior DOJ appointment is a fraud. To be credible, it means the debate cannot be had if the filibuster threat – over this nominee – is withdrawn. That couldn’t be its purpose, could it, to deprive us of a Senate investigation of serial lawbreaking by the past administration?
What will Hairless Reid think of when the first Supreme Court nomination comes along? Will he threaten to resign or just stomp his feet saying, “I wassa boxer. I coulda bin a contenduh.”
I’d like to think that they will eventually get to that discussion anyhow, not just as an antidote to the filibuster. I would hope that threateningto accelerate the timing of it is just being used as a convenient tool to tell Specter and Cornyn to STFU on Johnsen.
“Dawn Johnsen is an outstanding choice to head OLC. She served in that role during part of the Clinton Administration and is an expert on Federalism and the separation of powers. She was a frequent and outspoken critic of the Bush OLC, never hesitating to point out the subversion of the Constitution that this group was carrying out.” (bold is mine)
So, has she spoken out about Obama’s violations of American law and of his Constitutional oath, his passive acceptance of torture and murder, his refusal to prosecute torturers and murderers?
Prior to her nomination, she had this to say about how OLC should operate:
I would imagine that that is still her view. I would trust her to resign rather than produce garbage like Yoo, Bybee and Bradbury.
Great line Sojourner, “Personally, I have greater concerns about Cornyn’s qualifications…”
He’s one of the demagogues that need to go; AQ74, are you aware of the Pima County ,AZ court case about the Diebold machines? The CA case? the Diebold(Premier) systems are pices of crap and ’should’ be decertified.
Ah, the Constitution is a party unto itself. Anyone who supports the constitution without regard for the position of the Republican party on a particular issue is by definition partisan! Isn’t it wonderful what you can justify when you aren’t constrained by honesty?
I’m not educated on those specific cases, ubetchaiam, but have read a lot on the crappy Diebold machines, Mike Connell’s basement vote-flipping middle-man machine in Chattanooga, TN, the Ohio 2004 votes in the presidential election, etc.
I don’t know which counties in TX had the questionable Diebold machines. I don’t live in far west TX where Cornyn took Rove to campaign, but I would suspect that area first. (and the Dallas area).
Unfortunately Cornyn’s dem opponent in 2008, Rick Noreiga, did not have the vast sums of Big Boy money that Cornyn had, so could not pursue an investigation of the votes.
I hope you’re right. Prof. Johnsen is exceptionally well-qualified to head the OLC. Her appointment to head the office formerly headed by Bybee and Bradbury is also one of Obama’s few public concessions to the left. One he has left dangling for the left to see what it can muster.
Obama’s sop to the left is also in the hands of Harry Reid, whose management of the Senate’s business has been unimpressive. Whatever he is inside the Capitol Building, he appears outside of it to be as afraid of confrontation as a church mouse. Reid knows better than the public that Johnsen is the test case for appellate and Supreme Court nominations, and for investigations into Bush-era corruption. What will Harry do?
Sen. Specter sees both his physical and his electoral mortality staring him in the face. Pennsylvanians, I believe, are more than mildly upset at his obvious and repetitive saying one thing then doing another. They are not doing well in any part of this bail-out, bank or automotive. They’re only paying significantly higher credit card rates.
Mr. Specter appears not to be trying to represent his state. He’s doing a Bush to get through his primary, and appealing only to his most ardent rightwing critics. He probably should spend as much time looking at that new set of golf clubs.
For those who think that Inhofe is only a bonehead, and that he’s out in right field or not a good gofer for his Party, see this post (h/t overruledblog.com) that says Associate Justice Souter has hired no law clerks for the Supreme Court’s next term, which starts in October 2009.
That raises the question whether Justice Souter intends to retire this summer, giving Obama his first Supreme Court nomination. (Sadly, it’s not to replace Alito, Roberts, Scalia or Thomas.)
The GOP’s scorched earth policy regarding nominees needing Senate approval may shortly get its first big test. Progressives better hone their strategy and tactics by getting Prof. Johnsen’s approval through pronto.
If the nomination isn’t supported by enough Republicans then she would be free to head an investigation-prosecution related to the OLC memos. Sounds alright to me. Maybe someone should suggest it to her to see if she would be interested.
Obviously Cornyn and Specter would prefer someone who would push for deep investigations of lies under oath having to do with blow jobs. That’s the ticket. Pathetic