Harriet Miers: the immediate conservative backlash

Looks as if Bush has a lot of work to do to convince even his friends that she should be put on the Court. Here is a sample.

Michelle Malkin.

It's not just that Miers has zero judicial experience. It's that she's so transparently a crony/"diversity" pick while so many other vastly more qualified and impressive candidates went to waste. If this is President Bush's bright idea to buck up his sagging popularity--among conservatives as well as the nation at large--one wonders whom he would have picked in rosier times. Shudder.

Paul at Powerline.

This nominee is a two-fer -- she would not have been selected but for her gender, and she would not have been selected but for her status as a Bush crony. So instead of a 50-year old conservative experienced jurist we get a 60-year old with no judicial experience who may or may not be conservative.

I was hoping that, because this is Bush's second term, he would thumb his nose at the diversity-mongers and appoint the best candidate. He thumbed his nose all right, but at conservatives.

John Cole.

This pick makes no sense to me.

Southern Appeal.

I am done with President Bush: Harriet Miers? Are you freakin' kidding me?!

Patterico.

I don’t know much about this woman, but what I do know does not impress me. Bush could have done much, much better. I am likely to sit this one out and simply watch in appalled disgust.

It’s looking like my days of supporting this President may be over.

Betsy's Page.

To say that I'm disappointed in the nomination of Harriet Miers is an understatement.

I could go on, but you get the point. Personally, it does look like cronyism to the extreme given the number of other impressive potential nominees who were vetted. What is it with Bush about having the person in charge with finding someone for a job ending up with the job himself or herself?

Confirmation is not going to be easy. Democrats are going to be suspicious of her views and can, with some degree of persuasiveness, argue that she does not meet the Roberts' qualifications standard. Conservatives are not going to spend much energy to support someone who they think might be the next O'Connor or, worse from their perspective, Souter.

UPDATE:

According to The Associated Press, she said to she enjoys an especially close relationship with Bush, and she is sometimes the only woman on the brush-clearing excursions at his ranch in Crawford, Texas.

(Link.) He invites his closest confidants over to do yard work?

UPDATE #2:

“DEPLORABLE” [Rich Lowry ]
Just talked to a very pro-Bush legal type who says he is ashamed and embarrassed this morning. Says Miers was with an undistinguished law firm; never practiced constitutional law; never argued any big cases; never was on law review; has never written on any of the important legal issues. Says she's not even second rate, but is third rate. Dozens and dozens of women would have been better qualified. Says a crony at FEMA is one thing, but on the high court is something else entirely. Her long history of activity with ABA is not encouraging from a conservative perspective--few conservatives would spend their time that way. In short, he says the pick is “deplorable.” There may be an element of venting here, but thought I'd pass along for what it's worth. It's certainly indicative of the mood right now...
Posted at 12:30 PM

(Link)