Brer Miers and the Briar Patch? The DC Guy October 4, 2005 | Comments (9)

When I was growing up, one of my favorite child hood stories was the story of Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby.. To sum the story up, Brer Rabbit gets caught by his arch-nemesis Brer Fox. Brer Fox is about to do unspeakable things to the rabbit before he begs not to be thrown into the nearby briar patch.

He begs so hard, Brer Fox does it believing it to be the worse punishment he could inflict. Turns out, Brer Rabbit was born and raised in a briar patch, and he hops away unscathed.

Nothing like teaching kids about reverse psychology.

While I read and listen to all of the hype surrounding President Bush's choice of White House counsel Harriet Miers as the replacement for Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court, I keep looking around, waiting to see a giant briar patch. It's gotta be here somewhere.

To see the reaction of a lot of conservatives, you'd think that Bush had nominated Gloria Steinem to the court.

I can't help but thinking there's a bit of Shakespeare going on.

The Right gets nervous
It's no big secret that there are a lot of Republicans very concerned about Miers selection.

• Limbaugh called the Miers nomination an "unnecessary roll of the dice."
• The Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol said he was "disappointed, depressed and demoralized" by Bush's choice.
• Pat Buchanan has said that Miers is completely unqualified for the job.

Short of having the ghost of Ronald Reagan appear on Fox News and say he thinks this choice is a bad idea, you can't get much more conservative than those three. And they all are upset by Bush's decision.

This all strikes me as exactly the kind of strategy I would use to con my opponents into giving my choice an easy ride.

Put yourself in the average Democrat's shoes for a moment. You've got Rush Limbaugh, Bill Kristol, and Pat Buchanan out there saying this is a bad pick for them. You have got to be thinking "how can she NOT be a good pick for the Democrats?"

Now, I'm not saying that there is some kind of giant conspiracy, but it is interesting that you've got this many folks who are traditionally on Bush's side slamming him for this choice. That's enough to make me suspicious.

Maybe I've been in this town so long I am getting paranoid or cynical, but Bush has picked someone that is scaring his base into convincing his opponents that she's the right choice. He's doing this knowing that she's really on his side.

Am I the only one that sees this as a great move?

Is there really anything to worry about? Depends.
I don't think there really is anything to worry about, if you are a conservative. Liberals should be concerned about any candidate that Bush nominates, because you can guarantee that he's learned the lessons of his father's presidency. I find it hard to believe that Bush would let himself get snookered here.

As I said in my inaugural column, Bush was going to choose someone who was close to him. A "Bush Guy" (or Gal). He rewards loyalty, and he is going to choose someone who will be loyal to his agenda and his philosophy.

There's no reason, despite how much money Miers may have given to Al Gore when he was still Pro-Life, or her answers on a Gay and Lesbian PAC's questionnaire in 1989, to think that she is anything but a staunch conservative who shares Bush's opinion on judicial activism and strict interpretation of the Constitution.

Democrats can't afford to let their guards down because their traditional opposition doesn't like her. There has been an increasing tendency to automatically oppose anything a Republican is for (and vice versa) simply because they're for it. That's not a good idea here especially if my suspicions are right.

No matter what you think of the President, he has demonstrated a shrewd grasp of politics and strategy. His choice of Miers is, like his choice of John Roberts, probably a good one in the long run for him and his goals for the court. Some may even say that this is indicative of the high level strategic thinking he learned at Harvard Business School.

I think he just remembers his Southern tall tales or he's ridden Splash Mountain a lot.

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