Coyote Gulch

Monday, May 30, 2005

Potential Supreme Court Nominees
My Way: "The White House has laid the groundwork to place more conservatives on the Supreme Court, scrutinizing the backgrounds and legal views of a shrinking list of candidates amid speculation that ailing Chief Justice William Rehnquist soon will step down. Keenly aware that a chapter of President Bush's legacy is at stake, conservative and liberal advocacy groups are preparing for what both sides believe will be a bruising confirmation fight. Court experts expect that Rehnquist, who is battling thyroid cancer, will leave by the end of June when the current court session concludes."
Thanks to TalkLeft for the link.
Category: 2004 Presidential Transition
8:31:15 AM

Memorial Day
Iraq the Model: "Being an Iraqi citizen I believe I owe the men and women in the US military a lot and they deserve our utmost support and respect. It's their bravery and sacrifices that liberated me and my country from the worst tyrant of our time and for that I'm grateful and I say THANK YOU again."
Minneapolis Star Tribune: "As this bloody month of car bombs and American deaths -- the most since January -- comes to a close, as we gather in groups small and large to honor our war dead, let us all sing of their bravery and sacrifice. But let us also ask their forgiveness for sending them to a war that should never have happened. In the 1960s it was Vietnam. Today it is Iraq. Let us resolve to never, ever make this mistake again. Our young people are simply too precious."
Blogs for Bush: There have been many causes to many wars in American history but in each war, the young we sent to fight primarily set out to defend and extend human liberty. In times past we might have had an imperfect grasp of what liberty meant, but as well as it was understood by the men we sent out, it was for liberty that they fought, and died."
7:54:00 AM

Allen or Brownback for President?
Washinton Times: "The unexpected consequence of the filibuster compromise is to give a boost to the presidential prospects of Sen. George Allen, Virginia Republican."
Thanks to Stygius for the link.
The Moderate Voice: "...the stem cell issue is simmering and on the verge of the boiling point. Even if you don't factor in the recent House or Representatives vote, the stem cell issue is a potentially devastating not only because it directly impacts so many Americans - but because it's going to sharply bring into focus for many Americans how theology may be starting to trump science in government policy. Our bet is that most Americans won't like that...The old image of the GOP has been replaced. It certainly isn't Senator Specter, who is a moderate Republican - and has NEVER reflected his party's mainstream in recent years. But it isn't Ronald Reagan. It's a seemingly unfeeling Senator Brownback putting all kinds of spin to cover up the fact that he opposes stem cell research because it doesn't fit into the theological agenda that he wants the country to follow."
Harper's Magazine: "They are drawn as if by magnetic forces; they speak of Colorado Springs, home to the greatest concentration of fundamentalist Christian activist groups in American history, both as a last stand and as a kind of utopia in the making. They say it is new and unique and precious, embattled by enemies, and also that it is 'traditional,' a blueprint for what everybody wants, and envied by enemies."
Thanks to Walter In Denver for the link. He writes, "The bulk of the article deals with the nutzo fundies around The Springs, scary stuff, and I'd rather they kept religion out of politics, but my impression is that Jeff Sharlet isn't a reliable source. He's got a thing about religion, it seems, and perhaps he's just playing to the prejudices of Harper's readers."
George Will: "Sam Brownback, 48, won the Senate seat Dole vacated when he became the Republican presidential nominee in 1996. In 2008, all Republican aspirants will seek the support of the religious right and other social conservatives. Those factions are a large portion of the party and a larger portion of the party's primary voters."
Thanks to Political Wire for the link.
Category: 2008 Presidential Election
7:44:53 AM

How did the Salazars Win?
Here's a look at the past at Ken Salazar's (and John's) win last november from the Rocky Mountain News [May 30, 2005, "Study dissects Salazars' winning ways"]. From the article, "The campaigns 'de-emphasized their standing as Latino candidates. They reconstructed themselves as farmers and businessmen,' said (Anna) Sampaio, an assistant professor of political science at the University of Colorado at Denver. The Salazars were able to galvanize Hispanic voters while appealing to a large number of non-Hispanics, just as Antonio Villaraigosa did in Los Angeles recently to become the city's first Hispanic mayor in more than a century. Ken Salazar beat his Republican opponent in the U.S. Senate race, brewery executive Pete Coors, with more than 52 percent of the vote. John Salazar defeated former state natural resources director Greg Walcher, of Palisade, for the 3rd Congressional District seat that represents all or part of 29 counties in western and south-central Colorado. He won by about 13,000 votes - a considerable margin in a district in which Republicans hold a narrow plurality."
Category: Denver November 2004 Election
7:13:09 AM

e-mail John: