Letters to the Editor

• The Case of Short Term Politics vs. The US Supreme Court

  [Read the article: Meaningless charade]
  [Read more letters about this article: Here]

  I think the Democrats do have a plan, and I think it is working- unfortunately one side effect of that plan will be to hand the Supreme Court over to the right wing by confirming Alito quickly and relatively quietly. They are focusing on their short-term political gain- specifically the next midterm election, now only a scant ten months away. And they are learning, with somewhat limited success, to fight fire with fire and control the media spin.

  The Republicans have turned the subtle practice of media control into a high art form. While the Democrats don't have a Svengali like Karl Rove, they are slowly- ever so slowly- realizing that the way to control public opinion is to control and direct the mainstream media's reporting.

  What that means in the current context:

  1) If the Democrats attempt to block Alito, any Senator participating in the block will be automatically labeled as "obstructionist" by his Republican rival in the next campaign cycle. "Obstructionist" is a great, emotionally charged word- it brings to mind those who would block righteous progress, and nothing is as American as Progress, right? So to be obstructionist is to be nothing less than un-American! Even if the Dems put their full weight behind a filibuster, there is a good chance there will be enough defectors (i.e. Joe you-know-who) that Alito will get confirmed anyway, or in a worst-case scenario, triggering the Nuclear Option. The end result, however you slice it, is that Alito gets to sit on the high bench- and rather than be "obstructionist" the Dems have a chance to show themselves as "cooperative" and "bipartisan" and "reasonable." Again- this isn't about ideology or doing what is right; it is about words, and the power certain words have to influence public emotions and sentiment. Most of them have figured out that this is a battle they probably can't win, and will therefore mostly sit it out rather than bloody themselves.

  2) Perhaps more importantly, the senate Democrats want to get this whole confirmation thing over and done with as soon as possible. As long as the battle over Alito continues, it will be the top story on every 6:00 news, and above the fold in every serious newspaper in the country. There are much better stories currently floating around than the Alito hearings, at least from the perspective of the Democratic prospects in November elections. If you were in their place, hoping to expand your party's control in congress, would you rather see the headline "Democrats Continue to Block Alito Confirmation" or "Republican Congressmen Worried as Abramoff Investigation Expands." The Democrats need to do everything they can to keep the media's, and by extension, the public's attention focused on the Culture of Corruption.

  Aside from Roe v. Wade questions, you'll notice that the most common recurring theme of the confirmation hearings is to question Alito about his views on the limits of presidential power. Is the President above the law? Do congressional statutes apply to the executive branch? They don't expect any real answers from Alito- it is well known he supports the more imperial view of presidential power, and he's not dumb enough to blurt that out in the confirmation hearings. The reason they keep asking those questions is so the questions themselves get picked up and carried in the nightly news broadcasts. It is farce, it is theater, it has nothing to do with Alito's qualifications or views, or judicial philosophy- does anyone expect Alito to say honestly that he thinks the executive branch is above the law? Hell no- but the more they ask those questions, the more the media will focus on why those questions are being asked- specifically, the current executive's habit of ignoring laws with which it disagrees. The Democrats have to work very hard to tie the abuses of presidential power by a Republican president to the Republican party that refuses to investigate.

  Politics and propaganda have nearly merged. The American public has become increasingly susceptible to spin. Sound bytes and talking points have replaced honest political discourse. Perception trumps reality. Bush won the last election by exploiting the public's fears, and by repeating and repeating and repeating the focus-group-approved phrases. Tragic? Yes, but that is the political landscape that the Democrats will face in November. The GOP has already mastered this game and the Democrats are still trying to figure out the rules. Their only chance of affecting any real change in government is to retake at least one house of congress in the 2006 cycle, ending one-party control of all three branches, and opening the door for serious congressional oversight and investigation.

  Permalink Thursday, January 12, 2006 07:31 AM