Leahy: Current Supreme Court: ‘Most Activist Court In My Lifetime’
Appearing on Meet The Press, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) took aim at Republican rhetoric about the Supreme Court, with Leahy charging that the current conservative court are the activist judges: “This is a very, very activist court, the most activist court in my lifetime. They rewrote the law to say that–so they said that women could be paid less than men. They rewrote the law to say that age discrimination laws won’t apply if corporate interests don’t want them to. They rewrote the law to give ExxonMobil a $2 billion windfall. And they rewrote the law to say that corporations could come in and meddle in elections in this, in this country.”
Sessions: GOP Would Filibuster Somebody Like Goodwin Liu
Appearing on Meet The Press, Sen. Jeff Sessions was asked about the possibility of a filibuster of the upcoming Supreme Court nominee: “I promise a fair hearing, and I, I promise that the nominee will have a chance to explain any criticisms that are raised. But if a nominee is, is one that is so activist like Goodwin Liu that’s just been nominated, who’s written that, that the Constitution requires welfare and health care to individuals, if it’s somebody like that, clearly outside the mainstream, then I think every power should be utilized to protect the Constitution. We’ll not confirm somebody like that.”
Kyl: Filibuster Of SCOTUS Nominee ‘Unlikely,’ but ‘I’m Not Going To Take It Off The Table’
Appearing on This Week, Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ) said that a filibuster of the upcoming Supreme Court nominee was “unlikely,” but did not rule it out, citing the filibuster battles in 2005. “I’m never going to take it off the table because of what the Democrats have achieved here, which is the possibility of a filibuster,” said Kyl. “President Obama himself attempted to filibuster Justice Alito, who now sits on the Supreme Court. So if the president isn’t going to take it off the table, I’m not going to take it off the table. But I think it can easily be avoided by appointing, frankly, the kind of person that Senator Schumer just mentioned, someone who is mainstream enough that with intellect and the application of good law can persuade colleagues to support his position or her position.”
Clinton: In Event Of Biological Attack, ‘All Bets Are Off’
Appearing on Face The Nation, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said that the recently issued policy on nuclear weapons does not leave America less safe. “If we can prove that a biological attack originated in a country that attacked us, then all bets are off,” said Clinton. Gates also said that any country that uses biological or chemical weapons against the United States will “suffer a devastating conventional retaliation.”
Gates: U.S. Has To Be ‘Sensitive’ About Karzai
Appearing on This Week, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said that recent inflammatory comments Afghan President Hamid Karzai, regarding American troops, need to be taken in context. “Well I think, you know, this is a — a man who’s first of all a political leader. He has domestic audiences as well as foreign audiences,” said Gates, who also added: “I think we frankly have to be sensitive in our own comments about President Karzai in terms of being mindful that he is the embodiment of sovereignty for Afghanistan also in the way we treat him.”
Lieberman Objects To Removing Language On ‘Islamic Extremism’
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) said that he wrote the Obama administration a letter objecting to the removal of terms such as “Islamic extremism” from a key national security document. “This is not honest and, frankly, I think it’s hurtful in our relations with the Muslim world,” Lieberman said. “We’re not in a war against Islam. It’s a group of Islamist extremists who have taken the Muslim religion and made it into a political ideology, and I think if we’re not clear about that, we disrespect the overwhelming majority of Muslims who are not extremists.”
Barbour: Political Environment Even Better For GOP Than It Was In 1994
Appearing on State Of the Union, Gov. Haley Barbour (R-MS) said that the political environment for Republicans now is even better than it was in the first half of 1994. Barbour, who was RNC chairman during that very Republican year, said that the favorable environment for the GOP had “developed later, developed in a little bit different way” from now. “The people in this country are very agitated,” said Barbour. “Republicans are energized. And independents are talking like, thinking like, and planning to vote like Republicans.”
Tina Fey Repeats Her Palin Impression
Last night on Saturday Night Live, Tina Fey reprised her impression of Sarah Palin. Wearing a leather jacket similar to Palin’s outfit at her recent campaign rally for Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), Fey-as-Palin promoted a new “Sarah Palin Network,” featuring a TV movie about “death panels,” a game show entitled “Are You Smarter Than A Half-Term Governor?”, and a show in which Palin re-edits her interviews with Katie Couric in order to make Couric look bad:
