tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post113709806309819328..comments2024-03-29T10:48:59.954-05:00Comments on Althouse: On making the nominee's wife cry.Ann Althousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01630636239933008807noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137195339732453722006-01-13T17:35:00.000-06:002006-01-13T17:35:00.000-06:00Kos wasted no time in claiming that Mrs. Alito's t...<I>Kos wasted no time in claiming that Mrs. Alito's tears were contrived.</I><BR/><BR/>If only he had waited a bit, you wouldn't mind, huh?<BR/><BR/>tidalpoet--what bull. If your "good men" lost their jobs, they had more going on than spouting out an occasional "honey." I stick by regional argument. It doesn't take an Einstein to know the difference between a patronizing remark, and a friendly one. Come spend a few months in the south and you'll figure it out.<BR/><BR/>But I'll agree, my words about the tear episode are unkind to Alito's spouse. I think her behavior was at best foolish, if not calculated. But I am much more disgusted by the media and bloggers who buy into the spin. Hearings are rough, feelings get hurt. So what?Bethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16774002797359859550noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137193598138323482006-01-13T17:06:00.000-06:002006-01-13T17:06:00.000-06:00ChrisO said... "All three listed are adult women w...<I>ChrisO said... <BR/>"All three listed are adult women who chose to marry the men they married. They made the decision to stay with the one they married.<BR/><BR/>What's your point?"<BR/><BR/>OK, I'll try to be clearer. The two Democratic wives have been treated terribly by the Republicans, while the Democrats have been much nicer to Laura Bush. And the beating up of Hilary started well before she even indicated she would run for public office. </I><BR/><BR/>Would one of these "Democratic wives" be the same one that her husband's administration proclaimed was part of the "twofer" we got in that particular election? Or the same one that was the head of a debacle of a health care committee while unelected to anything? <BR/><BR/>Would the other be the woman who chased down a reporter in another room to tell him to "F--- Off" or the one who in speeches engaged in name calling with the best of them?<BR/><BR/>Are you implying that adult women should not be criticized regardless of what they say or do because of who they married?<BR/><BR/>Personally, I feel that political wives are fair game to the extent that they put themselves in the public eye. Laura Bush has been treated better than the others simply because she hasn't placed herself in the position to be criticized as often. If she does, she is fair game in my opinion. <BR/><BR/>I do detest the hit pieces on Hillary's hair and wardrobe that occurred, but don't see how they differ from the comments made about Alito's appearance prior to the hearings or the fashion hit pieces in WaPo that followed both the Roberts and Alito hearings. All are tacky and irrelevant. <BR/><BR/>I also think that the family members under 18 and over 80 should be exempt from public scrutiny - but not criminal liability - regardless of their actions. <BR/><BR/><I>As for the point about the women choosing to be with the men they married, are you implying that the same doesn't apply to Mrs. Alito </I><BR/><BR/>Absolutely not. Since I listed 3 women, I clearly meant all 3 women share the same responsibility for their decisions. <BR/><BR/>What I am implying (for example) is that, if you marry a serial womanizer and stay with a serial womanizer who continues to cheat on you, you should expect to look foolish when you go on national TV to blame everyone, but him for what happened. <BR/><BR/>Not saying anything is an option too often not exercised in the public realm.OhioAnnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09719352684331738275noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137172211875982792006-01-13T11:10:00.000-06:002006-01-13T11:10:00.000-06:00By the way, let's get things straight about CAP. I...By the way, let's get things straight about CAP. I am just shocked by the legend that has been accepted as unquestionably true by everyone. The various heinous statements made by various people associated with CAP were statements made by members of CAP and did not necessarily stand for what CAP officially believed. I actually still do not know what the official position of CAP was. If it was just to oppose coeducation, so what? Imagine if Smith or Wellesley decided to go coed now and its prominent alumni made a big stink about it. Would anyone say that those alumni are sexist? I think that a school has a right to have a distinct character. Which includes being all-male or all-female.Abchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15838940758685975612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137167379100416412006-01-13T09:49:00.000-06:002006-01-13T09:49:00.000-06:00This gives the whole thing a farcical tone -- at l...This gives the whole thing a farcical tone -- at least if everyone had not taken it seriously:<BR/>http://blogs.abcnews.com/downanddirty/2006/01/cap_smear.html<BR/><BR/>"D'Souza worked for CAP from 1983 to 1985, editing CAP's controversial Prospect magazine. He said a number of the Democratic attacks on Samuel Alito were based on falsehoods.<BR/><BR/>First off, D'Souza says, one of the two stories from Prospect that Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-MA, read this week at the confirmation hearings was intended as a satire.<BR/><BR/>The 1983 essay "In Defense of Elitism" by Harry Crocker III included this line, read dramatically by Kennedy: "People nowadays just don't seem to know their place. Everywhere one turns blacks and hispanics are demanding jobs simply because they're black and hispanic..."<BR/><BR/>The essay may not have been funny, D'Souza acknowledges, but Kennedy read from it as if it had been serious instead of an attempt at humor.<BR/><BR/>"I think left-wing groups have been feeding Senator Kennedy snippets and he has been mindlessly reciting them," D'Souza said. "It was a satire." "john(classic)https://www.blogger.com/profile/05804517855913600116noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137165737900759862006-01-13T09:22:00.000-06:002006-01-13T09:22:00.000-06:00"Don't worry, the shoe will be on the other foot s..."Don't worry, the shoe will be on the other foot soon enough."<BR/><BR/>That shoe has already been on that foot.<BR/><BR/>It is a pity that civility is lost and that our politics are bordering on the dysfunctional......bearbeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04770545814913465196noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137165021239257092006-01-13T09:10:00.000-06:002006-01-13T09:10:00.000-06:00And yevgeny, as long as we're getting facts straig...<I>And yevgeny, as long as we're getting facts straight, Vanguard describes it's investors as owners, so your parallel to a checking account at Chase is not appropriate.</I><BR/><BR/>I have several accounts at Vanguard (kids college, etc) and to describe me as an owner would be completely inaccurate. The analogy to a checking account is much more appropriate.Goatwhackerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16188180755273440630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137162677255002432006-01-13T08:31:00.000-06:002006-01-13T08:31:00.000-06:00If some of these senators don't quit going on the ...If some of these senators don't quit going on the way they do, we ALL will be <I><B>bored</I></B> to tears.<BR/><BR/>Word verification: kscvewfi<BR/><BR/>A word combining the meaning of "hooey" and "kerfuffle."reader_iamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17352836883752091339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137160762011732742006-01-13T07:59:00.000-06:002006-01-13T07:59:00.000-06:00Andrew: "Anyone know if Clarence Thomas' wife was ...Andrew: "Anyone know if Clarence Thomas' wife was present at his confirmation hearings,when he was called back after Anita Hill? I can't recall that being an issue."<BR/><BR/>Yes, his wife was there, and the cameras caught her with tears in her eyes. Of course, that was an effective image. Imagine if she'd absented herself after the charges that were made against him.Ann Althousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01630636239933008807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137160644495909602006-01-13T07:57:00.000-06:002006-01-13T07:57:00.000-06:00To Elizapumpkin, honey: I do love it when feminist...To Elizapumpkin, honey: <BR/><BR/>I do love it when feminists claim geographic location is a distinction for sexist word choice. My second most favorite is when they choose context as their next excuse.<BR/><BR/>I've known good men to lose their jobs because of those same words. And context mattered not a bit.Dustinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00104022282459906115noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137155413647899452006-01-13T06:30:00.000-06:002006-01-13T06:30:00.000-06:00Why ARE we discussing Alito's wife's tears?Oh, tha...Why ARE we discussing Alito's wife's tears?<BR/><BR/>Oh, that's right .... because there is nothing else of note to discuss about the hearings themselves. <BR/><BR/>There are quite literally dozens of reason unrelated to the hearings that could have been the reason just as there is another dozen reasons related to the hearings that could have created the tears. NO ONE but her knows why. <BR/><BR/>She did not sit there and sob uncontrollably (which, I agree, would have been weird), but got up and left the hearing for a few minutes to compose herself - a reasonable, rational and adult thing to do = and then returned.<BR/><BR/>End of story.<BR/><BR/>The one reason that I don't buy for her leaving is that the senators were asking "hard" questions. <BR/><BR/>Look at the time breakdowns. Any senator who spent more than a third of his/her time speaking - rather than allowing Alitio to respond - was derelict in their duty in my opinion regardless of their party affiliation. I <B>want</B> them to grill him on his judicial decisions. He is up for a lifetime appointment and better be able to explain himself.<BR/><BR/>What I don't to hear is Ted Kennedy (etc.) lecturing someone else on the morals of their behavior 30 years ago. <BR/><BR/><I>And for all you tender hearted Republicans comparing yourselves so favorably to us hard-hearted Dems, please tell me who has been abused more: Laura Bush, Hilary Clinton or Teresa Heinz-Kerry? I think it's a little late to start declaring yourselves sympathetic to the feelings of political wives..</I><BR/><BR/>All three listed are adult women who chose to marry the men they married. They made the decision to stay with the one they married.<BR/><BR/>What's <B>your</B> point?OhioAnnehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09719352684331738275noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137155252340604442006-01-13T06:27:00.000-06:002006-01-13T06:27:00.000-06:00"This could easily have been public theater intend..."This could easily have been public theater intended to make the Democrats look bad."<BR/><BR/>You guys actually think that Mrs. Alito crying is what makes the democrats look bad?! <BR/><BR/>...otherwise their performance would have been widely praised...<BR/><BR/>? ? ?knoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13231876226573540476noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137154641264759852006-01-13T06:17:00.000-06:002006-01-13T06:17:00.000-06:00I fail to see how expressing emotion is "losing co...I fail to see how expressing emotion is "losing control". It didn't cause a disruption.goeshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05781857563232791703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137149625108569062006-01-13T04:53:00.000-06:002006-01-13T04:53:00.000-06:00Speaking of running with the big dogs, Newshour in...Speaking of running with the big dogs, Newshour interviewee Ronald Allen professor at Northwestern University's School of Law in Chicago thought the committee members unsophisticated in their questioning and that it was an uneven fight: <BR/><B><A HREF="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/law/jan-june06/alitoanalysis_1-12.html" REL="nofollow">NewsHour</A></B>bearbeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04770545814913465196noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137149530399414162006-01-13T04:52:00.000-06:002006-01-13T04:52:00.000-06:00ChrisO: If I were as partisan as you, I would be ...ChrisO: If I were as partisan as you, I would be sending Thank You notes to the Democrat Senators, because they didn't succeed in killing Alito's nomination or destroying his reputation, but they did succeed in making themselves look like asses. However, as an American, I honestly tuned in to the hearings hoping for something better than that vile display. I feel the same way when I see Democrats treated unfairly.LoafingOafhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17398399168775034527noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137137397437961132006-01-13T01:29:00.000-06:002006-01-13T01:29:00.000-06:00Simon said:"...it is highly UNUSUAL for judges to ...Simon said:<BR/>"...it is highly UNUSUAL for judges to testify at these hearings..."<BR/><BR/>I'm no expert on the nomination process. But when McKenna was nominated in the late 19th century, several of his colleagues on the federal bench in CA wrote letters to the president and CJ Fuller warning of his incompetence. And those letters were read on the floor by a couple of senators. Not testimony exactly. But a pretty good turn of the century approximation. And while there was some protest to their introduction, it went more to decorum than legitimacy...<BR/><BR/>As an aside, in McKenna's case, I think his colleagues concerns were amply justified, as McKenna was among the least competent justices in the history of the court. Taft called his opinions "Cubistic."Brianlfryehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09464685014851616994noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137131529801705282006-01-12T23:52:00.000-06:002006-01-12T23:52:00.000-06:00Yevgeny, pumpkin, we're being asked to be upset th...Yevgeny, pumpkin, we're being asked to be upset that those mean, nasty Democrats made Alito's poor widdle wife weep with their rude questions. <BR/><BR/>As a feminist, I hold women to be responsible adults, and I make no apologies for saying she needs to grow up and act like one. Her husband's in the crucible, being tested to join the most elite and exalted of our judicial branch of government; she should show some spine, not get all fluttery. If she hasn't the stomach for the process, it's no one's fault and her tears shouldn't be made into political fodder.<BR/><BR/>I'm from the south, sweetie; we use honey, baby, sweetie, etc. like salt and pepper, and I'm called any number of such terms nearly every day., by men and women, older and younger than myself. It's about context. Perhaps in your imagination, there a single, feminist dogma. In the real world, it's more complicated.Bethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16774002797359859550noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137131081886781332006-01-12T23:44:00.000-06:002006-01-12T23:44:00.000-06:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Bethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16774002797359859550noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137130557327054542006-01-12T23:35:00.000-06:002006-01-12T23:35:00.000-06:00I don't think I've ever been more disappointed by ...I don't think I've ever been more disappointed by the lack of sense possessed by the American public than from this inane concern about whether this woman cried. First of all, CAP is an issue. It should have been a small one, but a non-denial denial makes it look like he's hiding something when I'm 99.9% sure he isn't. Second, did his family expect the Senators to roll over and ask for a belly-rub? Third, how the hell is her crying relevant to anything in the known universe? Does it have any bearing on Alito's fitness for the bench?<BR/><BR/>But since we live in a culture where asking hard questions is "partisanship" I guess this <I>is</I> the worst thing that's happened since Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction.Poohhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10088628100700088755noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137129222150223972006-01-12T23:13:00.000-06:002006-01-12T23:13:00.000-06:00First, let's get some facts straight:In the Vangua...First, let's get some facts straight:<BR/><BR/>In the Vanguard case, Alito had no requirement to recuse himself (other than the supposed "promise"), because under the judicial code of conduct mutual fund holdings are exempt unless you actually have ownership stake in the management company (go read it yourself). Saying that he has to recuse himself from Vanguard cases is sort of like saying that someone who has a checking account at Chase Manhattan bank has to recuse himself from any case involving JP Morgan Chase. Or better yet, if you drive a Chevy, you have to recuse yourself from cases involving GM. He's a customer of Vanguard not an owner.<BR/><BR/>As to the promise, the promise was, technically for an initial period. And yes, he did have many names on his recusal list. Also, if your claim is that there was something sinister about his lack of recusal, could you please explain how he could have benefited from it? Finally, out of more than a thousand recusals, he missed one. Does that make an ethically-challenged judge? Also, how do you square your claims with the ABA's unanimous decision to give him a well-qualified rating, which considered this particularly case and concluded there was nothing to it.<BR/><BR/>Second, I do not recall Republican Senators en masse making public statements at Senate hearings smearing Bill Clinton with lies. Neither do I remember Republican Senators saying that Kerry didn't fight honorably (in fact, I recall the opposite). What a fringe hatchet group does is one thing, what Senators and public officials do on national television is another. I doubt that Alito's wife cares much about what PFAW says about him. But it's different when it comes from the mouth of Senators in televised hearings.<BR/><BR/>Third, regarding the CAP, even if CAP was as vile as everyone says it was, I'm sorry but Ted Kennedy has no credibility whatsoever on the issue of past ethical challenges being used to undermine current character. The man killed a woman for godsakes, by depraved indifference.<BR/><BR/>Fourth, Elizabeth, given that you teach in a women's and gender studies department and are a self-proclaimed feminist, how would you react if someone referred to you as "honey?" I'm afraid, you'd hold a candlelight vigil and talk about our sexist society.<BR/><BR/>Fifth, all of you who are saying that "well, if he had answered questions about his jurisprudential philosophy, then all that remains are personal attacks." Well, let me turn that around. If the Democrats (and their handlers at Yale Law School) didn't think that anyone who doesn't agree with them on every single judicial issue is an out-of-the-mainstream fascist bigot, then maybe he'd be more forthcoming about his philosophy. <BR/><BR/>I also didn't hear Orrin Hatch attacking Ruth Ginsberg for being a Communist (for having joined the ACLU) after she declined to answer numerous questions about her philosophy. (I'm not saying that the ACLU is a Communist organization or that membership in it indicates such, but given that it did have a Communist problem early in its history one could unfairly characterize ACLU members as such... much in the same way they have characterized Alito for his membership in CAP).Abchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15838940758685975612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137126195003080682006-01-12T22:23:00.000-06:002006-01-12T22:23:00.000-06:00Elizabeth - I agree. This could easily have been ...Elizabeth - I agree. This could easily have been public theater intended to make the Democrats look bad.<BR/><BR/>Dick - Actually I used to work for Senator Schumer! I know what happened in the campaign, but bear in mind that this was not the first arguably racist thing D'Amato had done -- remember that terrible video of him imitating Judge Ito, in the OJ Simpson murder trial, in that pidgin Engrish accent? When Ito spoke in unaccented english? There are other examples. I don't know how many Jewish votes Schumer gained in that ordeal; probably not very many. Perhaps some moderate christians found it offensive and changed their vote.<BR/><BR/>Also, the attacks on Hillary began WAY before she was running for President. If Bill found them offensive, then clearly the GOP is out to hurt men's feelings.Wade Garretthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02427231454565149921noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137123219152201752006-01-12T21:33:00.000-06:002006-01-12T21:33:00.000-06:00I agree totally that hearings for any nominee for ...I agree totally that hearings for any nominee for the Supreme Court should be tough. But can't they be "tough" by asking challenging, searching questions about actual laws or cases? <BR/><BR/>Instead, it's like they've decided being "tough" means trying to trick him into admitting he's some sort of racist/sexist or whatever, which, let's face it, is patently ridiculous. He never would have got as far as he had if he was some bigoted turd.knoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13231876226573540476noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137122206867831492006-01-12T21:16:00.000-06:002006-01-12T21:16:00.000-06:00If Theresa Kerry had been shown crying on televisi...If Theresa Kerry had been shown crying on television over the slurs on her husband's service in Vietnam, the rightwingers would have first laughed uproariously, then offered it up as an example of her unworthiness for the serious job of First Lady. <BR/><BR/>Likewise, if Laura Bush had been shown crying over the slurs on her husband's wounds in Vietnam..oh wait, never mind.Bethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16774002797359859550noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137121745280570572006-01-12T21:09:00.000-06:002006-01-12T21:09:00.000-06:00I have it on good authority that ChrisO once visit...I have it on good authority that ChrisO once visited a bookstore where Mein Kampf was on sale. Hmm!!!mtrobertsattorneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09428761048285792427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137121564407295622006-01-12T21:06:00.000-06:002006-01-12T21:06:00.000-06:00ChrisO, a hateful and rather talking-points-slavis...ChrisO, a hateful and rather talking-points-slavish partisan Democrat, wrote: <BR/><I>And I firmly believe the questions being asked of Alito are legitimate.... And if he was more forthcoming about CAP, then Kennedy wouldn't have to keep digging about it. How many times do I hear Republicans mention Byrd and the KKK, a story that's 60 years old?</I><BR/><BR/>Byrd actually <I>was</I> a hardcore racist, as a matter of objective fact. With his KKK history, he had to have more hate in his heart than I can comprehend. The KKK is a terrorist hate group. I will take Byrd's word for it that he has reformed (although I did once see him saying hateful things about atheists on C-SPAN over the Pledge of Allegance debate - he told them to get out of the country...). <BR/><BR/>Alito has <I>never been</I> a racist; to the extent that anyone can read into someone else's heart, there is zero evidence he's a racist and there's a mountain of evidence that he is not one. There is no legit basis to even bring the idea up that he is a bigot, and it's pure McCathyite evil that they did. If you think it's no big deal to have to sit there as scummy Senators are trying to paint you as a bigot when you are not one, then you are as scummy as they are. <BR/><BR/>As far as CAP, funny that after Kennedy's big pruduction over subpoenaing records (even though all he had to do was ask), it turns out there was ziltch with which to back up their smears. But even the idea that Alito should be attacked over an article <I>someone else</I> wrote in a magazine is McCarthyite evil. Since you most likely have DailyKos on your fave links list, would you like me to make you "own" everything written on that site by people other than you? And yes, we did all see the item on Drudge before the hearings even started that quoted a Democrat as saying they are about to smear Alito so "stick a fork in him." <BR/><BR/>Also, some of us have long memories, and we remember how Democrats treated Ginsberg in her hearings when she was farless willing to answer questions about matters likely to come before the court. I recall distinctly Senator Biden making a big deal about how not only does she have a right not to give "previews", but it would be <I>improper</I> for her to do otherwise. So Senator Biden is a liar, as are his fellow Democrat Senators, when they try and suggest Alito was acting improperly in the hearings. Alito has been more responsive to questions than most nominees. Alito is clearly a better man than these jerks trying to assasinate his character. And some of us care about the emotions shown by his wife because we have a sense of decency. Since there was no basis for her husband to be smeared before the world, the scumbuckets who did it should be shamed out of the senate.LoafingOafhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17398399168775034527noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6329595.post-1137121057519125322006-01-12T20:57:00.000-06:002006-01-12T20:57:00.000-06:00"we expect a wife to sit behind her husband, unabl..."we expect a wife to sit behind her husband, unable to participate, just a backdrop of support": when did this noxious habit enter American public life?deariemehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06654632450454559188noreply@blogger.com