The Democrats "Whig" Out: The Small Fry

In no particular order....

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Remember how Russ Feingold came across as civil, reasonable, and even bipartisan in the John Roberts hearings? He even voted for Roberts, as I recall.

That Feingold didn't show up for the Alito hearings.

On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Dairy King flat-out accused Judge Alito of being the Bush Administration's Charlie McCarthy:

Feingold's line of questioning - that Judge Alito should not have received advice on preparation for the hearings from the Administation - is absurd, combative, and classless. Every nominee in modern times has been assisted by the aides to the President who sent the nominee's name forward. Judge Alito was correct to bristle at the suggestion he has been fed answers, and Feingold's transparent attempt to turn a distinguished nominee into the mouthpiece of the Administration should have been rebuked by his colleagues on the Committee and hopefully will be.

When Judge Alito began "I have been a judge for 15 years..." I thought he was going to bring the hammer down, but a well practiced restraint took over. Most of the prep probably had to do with preparing Judge Alito for the stress of being questioned by his intellectual inferiors.

Questioned? Try "harassed," "insulted," and "abused." It's the ultimate power play for scumbags like Feingold, even if they can't assassinatate Judge Alito's nomination in addition to his character, because they know that the nominee has to sit there and take their garbage if they want to be confirmed. Which, I suppose, is a sort of backhanded aid to showing a "supreme" judicial temperment, but what else it reveals about a nominee's fitness to sit on the highest court in the land escapes me.

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The only noteworthy contribution of Senate Minority Whip Ali Dickbar al-Durbini was his quip that "Every time I mention those words [i.e. "Federalist Society"] they [i.e. the Federalist Society] go into a rage!" Where and when these FS "rages" have taken place the Illinois defamer didn't think to disclose. Besides, why would any organization object to being demonized as some sort of subversive, neoNazi group anyway? Makes me wonder if Durbin will say the same thing about the Concerned Alumni of Princeton during the next SCOTUS confirmation hearings.

Oh, yes, and apparently Dirty Harry's Number One tried to blame Judge Alito for the West Virginia mining disaster, not unlike one of his colleagues attempted to hang Hurricane Katrina on Chief Justice Roberts. Because, you know, Alito was programmed by the White House like a jurisprudential Johnny Mnemonic, and everything is George Bush's fault.

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Ranking Committee Donk Pat "Leaky" Leahy drew the NSA/"domestic spying" card and went on a "unitary executive" harangue from which no amount of calm, patient explanation from Judge Alito would shake him. Once again, another case of Alito refusing to bark the answers the Dems wanted from him like a trained seal. And they accused the White House of feeding Alito answers?

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Herb Kohl and Dianne Feinstein were just clueless, not malevolent. Although Senator Feinstein was scary on occasion.

No wonder Ed Whelan had trouble staying awake.

But nobody was asleep after the Bullycrats made Mrs. Alito cry....