Reply #2: And perfectly consistent with the Miers statement from last week

[TayTay]

"Caught up in a wave of scandal and concerns about the war in Iraq, the President has allowed right wing interest groups to decide the fate of his Supreme Court nominee rather than stand up to his ultra conservative base. It's a telling statement about the instability and ideological confusion facing the White House and the Republican Party.
"This nomination was mishandled from the beginning. The President nominated someone whose qualifications he alone knew, then refused to disclose the only documents that would give the Senate even a hint of his nominee's judicial philosophy. If the President really believed Harriet Miers was the most qualified candidate for the Supreme Court, he made a terrible mistake refusing to fight for her and capitulating to the right wing.

"In this difficult moment, it's even more important for the President to choose a nominee in the mold of Justice O'Connor who will decide each case on the relevant facts and applicable law rather than someone who will use the Court to pursue an ideological agenda outside the mainstream."

This President is shallow, weak and beholden to a vengeful right wing base that believes it owns him."

This is gonna get good. I bet the hearings won't take place until at least Jan. Plenty of time for the full-court press and possible meltdown of the US Senate.