Judge Edith Clement v. Justice Janice Rogers Brown

Click here, here, here, here, here, here, for some quotes from Janice Rogers Brown.

Contrast this record with this.

I confess that I am exaggerating. I am sure that Judge Clement has written many opinions and made a few speeches, but I am sure they are quite safe.

Powerline has more:

I would say that the last 20 or 30 years of history suggest that Republican nominees who do not have a clear track record of commitment to conservative jurisprudential principles drift to the left over time--some, of course, farther than others. I'm not saying that this is a law of nature, only that it seems like a pretty clear pattern in recent years.

I AM saying that this is a law of nature. Earl Warren, William Brennan, Harry Blackmun, Lewis Powell, O'Connor, Kennedy, Souter. All of them were Republican appointees. Four of them became raging leftists. Three of them had (have)records that veer all over the map, including the recent reliance on foreign law and other extra-constitutional principles.

I am sure we will not notice the difference between today's Court and the new Court that will convene with Justice Clement seated on the bench this fall (after maybe a token fight in the Senate - the Dems can't make it too obvious by being unanimous again). As I said before, the left has the Court and the laws that it wants. This situation is far from "moderate," and this new appointment (if the rumors are true), will change nothing.

What is most disappointing is that we are more prepared than ever before to win a battle over an actual strict constructionist. We are ready for a fight over a solid nominee in a way that we were not in 1987 when the left smeared Robert Bork. I fear that President Bush may not get another opportunity (except to replace Justice Rehnquist) which at most would be an idealogical wash.

See also Michelle Malkin for further updates.