It's not that I believe that a the ability of a Supreme Court justice to serve is compromised by their Christian faith. My concern with Harriett Miers' nomination -- in light of yesterday's statements by the President that he picked Ms. Miers because of her Christianity -- lies in the fact that this nominee's religious beliefs are her qualifying factor, that is the reason she has been chosen to serve on the highest court. Even if this isn't true -- which is to say that the president is desperately trying to woo extreme conservatives back into the fold (which is worse that it being true, by the way) -- the only other possible explanation for Ms. Miers' selection is her personal relationship with the president. Not a stellar qualification for nomination to the Supreme Court.

[Sidenote: Unfortunately, most pundits are not discussing the frequency of the nomination of presidents' friends to the Supreme Court. Indeed, it has happened quite often over the course of American history. Does that make it right? Does that mean that doing so demonstrates strong leadership? I would likely argue 'no,' especially in our current environment in which we find ourselves without leadership at the top, little or no confidence in government, and little or no evidence that our governing bodies are ruled by law and not personal favors.]

Two final thoughts on the Miers' nomination. First, Democrats need to be careful what they wish for. It's fun to sit back and watch the Republican Party and its all-powerful special interests (what they call their "base"). But Democrats will rue the day that Bush withdraws Miers' nomination. If, at this point, Bush were to withdraw her nomination it would be because far-right interests forced him to do so...and the resulting candidate for the bench would not only be worse but Senate Republicans would be forced to rally around the new nominee to appease the same interests that dislike Ms. Miers.

Second, why the hell is Ms. Miers' personal faith relevant to her ability to participate in the deciding of Supreme Court cases? I understand why it is important for the far-right to appease themselves in the mirror day-in and day-out; it enables these self-annointed prophets to stand in front of a congregation or microphone and tell their disciples that Jesus would be proud of their fight for the soul of the Supreme Court. I do not understand why reasonable people of faith (I hope they are still out there...don't look for them on cable news) allow their name to be dragged through the filth and mire by partisan hacks.

Christianity's focus cannot be Roe v. Wade, search and seizure, or even free speech. Did the Apostle Paul and the early church launch a political action committee for the placement of sympathetic hacks in positions of power? No. Did Jesus rub elbows with the robber barons of His day in a pitiful attempt to buy a seat in the halls of power? No.

The sooner the modern day "Christian" church stops fighting a hypocritical and hypothetical war on politics, the sooner they can return to the mission given to them by Christ: love, feed, clothe, and minister to the world.
- posted by C @ 6:18:00 AM