[Mb-civic] Roberts's Blank Slate - Charles Krauthammer - Washington Post

[William Swiggard]

Roberts's Blank Slate

By Charles Krauthammer
Friday, July 22, 2005; Page A23

Having learned the lessons of the Bork fiasco, when Teddy Kennedy 
libeled Robert Bork on the floor of the Senate within minutes of Bork's 
nomination -- a speech that became the reference point for the entire 
nomination fight -- this White House put its new man out front first. 
The television tableau was perfect. President introduces attractive, 
boyish-looking, hornless judge to the nation, with wife in the wings and 
two adorable kids in tow. A John Edwards moment.

As impressive as the choreography are the president's ambitions. He 
remains committed to doing big things. The president who has set 
reforming Social Security as the centerpiece of his domestic policy and 
democratizing the entire Middle East as the centerpiece of his foreign 
policy was obviously interested in making history with his first Supreme 
Court appointment.

And there were two kinds of history available to him -- ethnic or 
ideological: nominating the first Hispanic, which is a history of sorts, 
or nominating a young judge who would move the court to the right for 
the next 25 years. President Bush eschewed the more superficial option 
and went for the real thing.

<>Or so he thought. But did he?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/21/AR2005072102187.html?nav=hcmodule 

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