Wednesday, April 27, 2005
The Hatchet Man Cometh
Bob Dole has spoken on the filibuster issue. It ain't pretty.
His second paragraph insinuates that he'd like Frist to act cautiously. His last paragraph argues that Frist would be justified in obliterating the filibuster.
Dole is, ultimately, a funny guy to argue for restraint with the filibuster. Twelve years ago, he was the one who greatly increased the usage of this device - maybe not against judicial nominees, but against a lot of the Clinton administration's key legislation. Dole, in fact, deemed Clinton an illegitimate president in January 1993 on the dubious grounds that he hadn't received 50% of the popular vote. It all had to do with setting the stage for Dole's stillborn presidential run in 1996.
After January of 1995, Dole didn't need a filibuster to deal with judicial nominees. He had majority control of the Senate and plenty of Clinton's judicial nominees died quiet deaths in committee hearings, leaving the federal bench underpopulated and overworked. Had they not won the majority in 1994, it's hard to say that the GOP would have refrained from filibustering nominations. Let's see, they shut down the government in 1995, forced impeachment through with a lame duck congress in 1998, and Dole himself violated Senate norms by criticizing Clinton while the president was overseas.
I had mild hopes that Dole might sound a cautionary note, but I also think the mythology constructed around the man is bullshit. At his core, he's a hatchet man. He rose to prominence because Richard Nixon could count on him to be a loyal attack dog when needed, and Dole played that role on his own behalf from 1993 to 1996. Now he's serving the Bush administration, ironically working to undo an institution that he was happy to exploit when he needed it. A man of principle indeed.
His second paragraph insinuates that he'd like Frist to act cautiously. His last paragraph argues that Frist would be justified in obliterating the filibuster.
Dole is, ultimately, a funny guy to argue for restraint with the filibuster. Twelve years ago, he was the one who greatly increased the usage of this device - maybe not against judicial nominees, but against a lot of the Clinton administration's key legislation. Dole, in fact, deemed Clinton an illegitimate president in January 1993 on the dubious grounds that he hadn't received 50% of the popular vote. It all had to do with setting the stage for Dole's stillborn presidential run in 1996.
After January of 1995, Dole didn't need a filibuster to deal with judicial nominees. He had majority control of the Senate and plenty of Clinton's judicial nominees died quiet deaths in committee hearings, leaving the federal bench underpopulated and overworked. Had they not won the majority in 1994, it's hard to say that the GOP would have refrained from filibustering nominations. Let's see, they shut down the government in 1995, forced impeachment through with a lame duck congress in 1998, and Dole himself violated Senate norms by criticizing Clinton while the president was overseas.
I had mild hopes that Dole might sound a cautionary note, but I also think the mythology constructed around the man is bullshit. At his core, he's a hatchet man. He rose to prominence because Richard Nixon could count on him to be a loyal attack dog when needed, and Dole played that role on his own behalf from 1993 to 1996. Now he's serving the Bush administration, ironically working to undo an institution that he was happy to exploit when he needed it. A man of principle indeed.
