Why it's so hard to have a constitutional revolution-- Part I

[phantom power]

In the days to come, we are likely to get a lot of allegations that Miers is unqualified for the job. Don't be fooled. Sure, she didn't go to a fancy law school (neither did the second Justice Harlan, by the way). But in her own way she's just as qualified as lots of other people who have sat on the Court. She may not be qualified in the way that legal academics like myself might like, and not in the way that movement conservatives would like, but she fits a familiar stereotype of Supreme Court Justice-- the business lawyer with powerful connections.

Following the Civil War, Republican Presidents placed a series of railroad lawyers on the Court with little or no judicial experience, but plenty of experience as counselors to business. That's what Miers is essentially, a Texas lawyer with lots of business connections who advised corporate clients, including, most importantly, George W. Bush. He liked the advice she gave him, and so she followed him during his career.

Presidents don't choose this kind of nominee because they want a revolution. They choose them because they will give the executive a free hand, and, perhaps most important, because the nominee will help ensure a pro-business climate.

And what, exactly, does business want? Overturning the New Deal? The Constitution in Exile? The return of God to the public schools? The end of affirmative action? Outlawing abortion once and for all? Squashing gays and lesbians underfoot? None of these things. What business wants is stability, comfort, predictability, and an agile, productive, submissive and demobilized population. It wants a powerful executive that can protect America's interests abroad. It wants a Congress freed from federal judicial oversight that is able to dish out the pork, jiggle the tax code and deregulate the economy according to its ever shifting concerns and interests. And it wants a Supreme Court that will give a pro-business President and a pro-business Congress a free hand, a Court that will protect the rights of employers over employees, advertisers over consumer groups, and corporations over environmentalists.

It wants, in short, someone very much like Harriet Miers.

http://balkin.blogspot.com/2005/10/why-its-so-hard-to-have-constitutional.html

[BlueEyedSon]

1. Why would big biz NOT want to overturn the New Deal? Gimme a break!

[Burma Jones]

2. Ding Ding Ding Ding

Pre-cisely

[Demeter]

3. She's A Crook

and that ought to be disqualifying enough for anyone.

[AndyTiedye]

4. The Robber Barons Want All Of Those Things

And what, exactly, does business want? Overturning the New Deal?

They want that very badly.

The Constitution in Exile?

They are OK with that.

The return of God to the public schools? The end of affirmative action? Outlawing abortion once and for all? Squashing gays and lesbians underfoot?

To be sure, the robber barons don't want to live UNDER a theocracy. They want to live ABOVE it, like the sheiks of Saudi Arabia.
Theocracy is the most effective means ever devised for keeping the masses in line, and they are all about keeping the masses in line.

What business wants is stability,

No form of government is more stable than a theocracy. No theocracy has EVER fallen to a popular revolution in all of recorded history.

comfort,

as I said, they would live ABOVE the theocracy, not UNDER it

predictability, and an agile, productive, submissive and demobilized population.

That is why they support the emerging theocracy.

It wants a Congress freed from federal judicial oversight that is able to dish out the pork, jiggle the tax code and deregulate the economy according to its ever shifting concerns and interests. And it wants a Supreme Court that will give a pro-business President and a pro-business Congress a free hand, a Court that will protect the rights of employers over employees, advertisers over consumer groups, and corporations over environmentalists.

They want all that too. When you own the government, why not go for it all?

[Amonester]

5. Employers (Taxpayers) vs. Employees (Government Officials)...

And since the ever greedy "rulers" always pay less 'n less taxes...

Theocracy is the most effective means ever devised for keeping the masses in line, and they are all about keeping the masses in line.

And as long as the masses continue to pay for their scandalous enrichment without giving a ****...

GO FITZ! :smallcandlesburninhere:

[Igel]

6. The "Constitution in Exile" is an old term that dems have

recently taken over because they like the sound of it. I'm not sure if you think that business wants the constitution brought back from exile or not.

"Constitution in exile" originally referred to the Constitution as interpreted before FDR: the repubs' view was the the SCOTUS at the time exiled the real constitution, and substituted a different one.