Katie Doyle, Girl About Town

Friday, Jul. 01, 2005 - 3:46 p.m.

mod�er�ate

adjective
1: being within reasonable or average limits; not excessive or extreme - "moderate prices"; "a moderate income"; "a moderate fine"
2: not extreme; mild or calm; temperate - "a moderate penalty"; "temperate in his response to criticism"
3: marked by avoidance of extravagance or extremes; restrained - "moderate in his demands"

noun
1: a person who takes a position in the political center; a centrist

verb
1: preside over - "John moderated the discussion"
2: make less fast or intense - "moderate your speed"
3: temper; hold in restraint; keep within limits - "moderate your alcohol intake"; "hold your temper"; "control your anger"
4: make less severe or harsh; "He moderated his tone"

Would someone please explain to me exactly how in the hell "moderate" has come to mean "liberal" to what seems to be every single member of the Republican party? Especially today, when several members of the party - Dubya included - made a point of letting all us upstart Democrats know that whatever nominee Bush holds forth to replace Sandra Day O'Connor better damn well be approved with no noise, by God, or there will be hell to pay, and oh, by the way, (Dubya is excluded in this:) there won't be any damn liberal upstarts like O'Connor on the list, so don't even go there.

By noon, faces had been slapped and the glove tossed down. What tiny bit of hope I had that Bush would at least give a single second of thought to nominating a moderate replacement was completely and utterly crushed beneath the hobnailed boots of Republican censure, warning, and rhetoric. Explain to me how Democrats in the Senate are supposed to trust or support their fellow members of government when before they've even had a chance to digest the events unfolding, Republicans are already glaring and warning them they'd better tow the line...OR ELSE. (Was that thunder I heard rumbling through?) How in hell can you have good faith in a situation like that? How can you have good relations? How can anything ever constructively get done? And why the hell should I, as an American citizen, want to be stuck with these people or believe that they have my best fucking interests at heart?

They DON'T.

If they did, rather than bully and badger and raise their fists, rather than start trashtalking Sandra Day O'Connor (who was a Reagan nominee and a Republican legislator, btw) for being a damn liberal, they'd actually reassure people and say look, we get that 65% of the American public wants to see moderation in politics and on the bench. We get that. And the person we nominate (or I, as the case may be) and confirm, will reflect that. Instead, they have already stressed that they will choose the person they want, and god DAMN it, there will be no filibuster. There will be no dissent heard. There will be no moderation, and there sure as HELL won't be anyone who thinks a woman has the right to choose or an employee to sue his employer, no matter WHAT the circumstances.

Alberto Gonzales is about as moderate as I think Democrats can hope for, so at this point in time, I pretty much pray he'll be Bush's choice to replace O'Connor; I doubt very much he will be, though; seems Republicans have come to feel he is himself too liberal, at least as far as that whole abortion thing goes. Perhaps he'll be the guy Dubya names to replace Rehnquist, once there's a new hardliner on the bench; I don't think Bush will risk him this early in the game. It's a no-brainer, really, but I predict an uglyass fight full of every manner of namecalling and abuse coming from the Republicans in charge of the Senate and Judiciary Committee. Bush's nominee will be a hardcore Conservative like Pricilla Owen or Janice Rogers Brown (my money is on Brown). I'm betting it will be someone who has already been turned down, because that's a huge win for Bush - Republicans will vote to ban the filibuster and then force a vote on a nominee Democrats have already made it overwhelmingly clear they hate. There's not a bigger nose to thumb in the entire political world, and this administration and Pubby-controlled Senate is just sophomoric enough not to be able to pass it up. Mark me on that. One way or another, the filibuster is going down. No matter what happens, it ain't gonna be pretty. There is no way in hell this is going to go well or that the judge ultimately confirmed will in any way reflect the moderate views 65% of the American public would like to see upheld. There's just not. I'd love to be proven wrong, though. I pray I am.

Peace out,
Katie

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