This is going to be a short post wherein I wish to express what I truly feel is the first and overarching mistake the Dems have made with regards to Alito and the filibuster.
Obama is a perfect example of what I state, categorically, is THE primary mistake the Dems have made and will keep making. Obama stated that he thought the filibuster was a bad idea and that the Dems hadn't made a case for it (paraphrasing). This is incredibly wrong-headed and shows a major part of where the entire nominating process has gone awry. You see, the judiciary hearings themselves where the senators are supposed to grill the nominee and get his/her measure is NOT the place to setup a filibuster. Sure, if the target is easy ala Bork then it is a no brainer that the nominee either die on the judiciary vine, get shot down in a full vote, or filibustered. Bork was so bad that a filibuster was unnecessary.
more below:
The best and ONLY way that the Dems, and we the People, should view the judiciary committee is as a Grand Jury. It is their job to simply determine if the nominee is fit to go before the senate (for trial). That's it. It is NOT the place that an argument for filibuster or the bulk of a lessor fight needs to be clearly and fully laid out. It is in the senate itself, where DEBATE takes place, that is the correct place for setting up a fight up to and including filibuster is to be made. That's the entire point of debate! First off, there must NEVER be a rush to get a nominee voted on and approved/disapproved. There is NEVER a rush. Even with a vacancy to fill, there is never a rush. Senators these days, including newbies like Obama, view "debate" as quaint and just rope to jump but of no real importance in and of itself.
In this case with Alito, because of his evasive answers in the committee hearings (and also due to the uncoordinated grilling by the Dems) it was entirely appropriate to extend debate to get a full airing of Alito out there in the full senate. THAT was the correct time to educate the public. You DEBATE the nominee and go over, very carefully as a body and for the People, the background, rulings, and philosophy of the nominee. The senate is the courtroom (and recall, the committee is merely the Grand Jury, so to speak). It is in the courtroom that the jury (we the People, and to a lessor degree, other senators) is educated about the facts. They are given the evidence and the arguments from both sides. In THIS case, and in too many cases prior, the defense (the GOP) has rushed to get a final vote before any real information is presented to the jury. WRONG WRONG WRONG!
Because of this mad rush towards final vote sans an airing of MOST of the evidence to the members of the jury, a filibuster was the ONLY way to permit an appropriate airing. It was the best way to ensure a full airing. The Dems, like Obama, instead see the vote as perfunctory. They do not understand the meaning of the word DEBATE. They do not get the actual appropriate function of the judiciary committee. They wrongly think that the judiciary, with its few days of questioning and record vetting, is the ONLY appropriate place to setup for accepting or denying a nominee. NO! Bad Obama! BAD! Go sit in the corner and reflect on your error. It is the full debate in the senate (the actual trial) that is THE appropriate place to educate the public (jurors) and the senate and reporters. There must never, ever be a mad rush to vote. Never. Debate, thorough and complete is required and necessary unless it is an open and shut case. A filibuster, in this day and age, is the ONLY way to allow for a proper trial.
I've had my say. I stand by it.
