In the midst of a sleepless night caused by the newest addition to my family, I wrote this post expressing my opposition to Harriet Miers. Nine hours later, she withdraws. Adam Groves seems to think I might be the proximate cause of this turn of events. Far be it from me to disagree with Adam.
Of course, Adam and I are kidding. White House staffers have leaked to me that the Grounds is one of the most widely read blogs in the Bush administration. (I hope that doesn't land me in front of a grand jury.) But of course, my post had nothing to do with Ms. Miers decision. Oh yeah, I'm kidding about that leak thing, Mr. Fitzgerald.
This is a great day for conservatism. Not so because of the withdrawal, but because we proved something about the strength of our movement. Our strength doesn't lie in the fact that we can cause one thing to happen or, in the case of Harriet Miers' confirmation to the Supreme Court, not happen. President Bush made a bad pick for a legacy defining appointment. Some conservatives agreed with the pick while others did not. We fought it out amongst ourselves for three weeks until we got a resolution that enables everyone on the right side of the spectrum to unify again behind our President and prepare to lock horns with our political adversaries on the left. And unify we must.
I'm confident that the President will make a Roberts type pick that conservatives will uniformly support. That will, in turn, mortify the left. We must be prepared to support this pick with the same degree of passion and vigor that we invested in the election and reelection of President Bush. A fight is coming and it is one that President Bush cannot win on his own. There will be, I hope, more fights that require our steadfast support. These are the battles we hoped would come when we sent George W. Bush to the White House; border security, tax reform and more judicial confirmations, to name a few. We're solidly in his corner on each of them. Let's hope he takes the fight to the other side now.
There are a few people who deserve a lot of credit in this. The first and most important is Harriet Miers. Personal ambitions took a backseat for the good of the country, the President and his base. The writing was on the wall and she read it. Most people are blinded in the face of facts. She was not. Second, the President. He's strong-willed but not stubborn. I'm sure he wanted to prove that he was right on this one, but he also had the sense to do the right thing. Given this mulligan, he'll make the right pick. Finally, several Republican senators, including Bill Frist, were honest with the White House and saved the administration from walking through a minefield. It is especially gratifying to see senators do the right thing far, far away from a microphone or television camera.
Conservatives, celebrate and remember this day. We did something the left can't do; fight amongst ourselves on ideas and issues and then come back together stronger than ever. It is sign and signal of an enduring movement.