Welcome readers of the Doua Report at Salon

Boy, did this latest pick for the Supreme Court raise some eyebrows or what!? I have been getting alerts from all sorts of places. The Washington Post has a good article on the selection.

Miers, who was Bush’s personal attorney in Texas, was the first woman elected president of the Texas Bar Association and was a partner at the Texas law firm of Locke Liddell & Sapp before coming to Washington to work in the Bush administration.

I for one am very happy women will retain their level of representation on the bench. I am also glad Miers has not been a sitting judge, because I strongly believe you need someone on the bench who is not a judge. Half my family are lawyers and I respect them dearly, but I also know they can be stuck inside the box occassionally. Miers is a very successful lawyer and will be able to bring a broader perspective to the court – which is what we all should want. We do not want 9 identical personalities. We want 9 diverse people who believe in a common view of law, but not a common view on life in America.

Ankle Biting Pundits is not happy:

I’m highly disappointed. Now Harriet Miers may turn out to be a fine Justice on the Supreme Court. The problem is that we don’t know that.

Bush does know. He knows Miers very well, and because she does not have a conservative trail behind her she will get through like Roberts did.

Many at Redstate are not happy either. Oh well, I guess that is why I am an independent conservative! And still Chillin’

UPDATE:

Regarding all the hoopla about Miers contributing to Gore and Clinton over 15 years ago, and once being a democrat, I have a few simple reminders. Former democrats include Bill Bennett, Jean Kilpatrick, Ben Nighthorse Cambell (and a slew of other Senators), yours truly – AJStrata, who supported Carter over Reagan – and Ronald Wilson Reagan himself. Folks, some of the most stalwart conservatives are people who learned the hard way that democrats were not what they pretended to be. Keep Chillin’.

UPDATE II: As I expected, the conservative punditry has become as knee jerk as the liberal side. It is clear Miers is a reforming democrat – just like half of the conservative base.

If you doubt me, try listening to Hugh Hewitt on the matter

Also check out The Commissar’s thoughts on the matter. Like me he is not all that worried we will be missing another battle royale in the Senate this fall.

UPDATE III:

The best Bill Kristol smackdown comes from AcademicElephant, who tells Kristol to stop crying, get a grip and do some research. Stop embarrassing yourself Bill. Give the woman a proper hearing.

UPDATE IV:

I think conservatives have forgotten something very important in the Miers nomination hoopla – the right is in control of government due to an alliance of respect and mutual goals with the moderate, conservative middle. I am pro-life (though I am not for an all out band ban on abortions right now), I am for lower taxes, smaller and focused government spending, welfare reform, perscription drugs for needy seniors and the war in Iraq. I have just about nothing in common with democrat policies because they are all the same failed policies we have been trying to rid ourselves since Reagan.

But don’t go insulting me because I do not tow the uber-conservative line. Do not pull one of these. If we cannot retain civility and respect, we will go the way of Pat Buchannan and become a powerless voice. I see no reason to support people who cannot respect my reasoned differences. Last thing we need is to bring back the circular firing squad. Now that would be stuck on stupid.

I believe Reagan had a rule for true conservatives, something about never speaking ill of them (which does not mean there cannot be debate). IMHO, breaking that rule bars one from being considered a Reagan Conservative.

UPDATE V:

Check out all the background by Fred Barnes. It seems we may have a case of conservatives projecting their worst fears (being a somewhat insecure lot) onto the blank slate which is Miers right now.

And this from Erik at Redstate is so pathetic. Here is a snippet of my comment to him

It appears, for what it is worth, that George W. Bush was the ultimate stealth nominee. He has acted like a true-blue conservative, talking the talk and walking the tax cut walk. But, he has expanded government, spent the future, and now nominated she who has the potential to be a female Souter.

This is getting on my nerves – here is a snippet of my comment to Erik

He [Bush] stopped the funding of research on young humans through embryonic stem cell research. He supported the efforts to stop late term abortions and provide parents the right to know when their daughter might be thinking about getting one.

These items right here are more than any Republican has ever done to sanctify life. Even more the Ronald Reagan.

END UPDATE

BTW, I am trying this ‘Watering Hole’ experiment by linking to this Llama Butchers post with a trackback. What will happen? I don’t have a clue!