Stanley --
If you look at my reply to your posting from yesterday, you will
see that my comments dealt solely with the criticism that Ms. Miers has
no prior judicial experience. I made no reference to derogatory
statements in other contexts. However, I do object to the highly
emotional "zing" words, e.g., "cronyism," that are used by you to
conduct this intellectual discussion. Let's start the discussion off by
identifying what are the necessary qualities of a Supreme Court justice,
what are the desirable but not required qualities, and what qualities
are unacceptable. It is only when we establish the criteria that we
have a means of measuring whether any nominee "measures up."
Nanna Frye, Law Librarian
Court of Appeal
San Diego, CA
-----Original Message-----
From: Stanley R. Conrad [mailto:conrads@stjohns.edu]
Sent: Thursday, October 06, 2005 4:03 PM
To: Frye, Nanna; Samuel E Trosow
Cc: law-lib@ucdavis.edu
Subject: RE: Harriet Miers - Supreme Court Nominee
Nanna-
If derogatory statements have been directed anywhere in this thread, I
think they've been focused through Miers on the administration's
disastrous record of cronyism (most glaring recent example is, of
course, appointing a failed Arabian Horse judge to run FEMA). Questions
about Ms. Miers' qualifications and views are of supreme importance to
anyone who cares about, or is involved in the law. And to the degree
that the administration resists the release of documents written by her,
enquiring minds should be asking why.
Comparing her case to Justice Powell is silly, actually. Read the
biographical information you posted. Powell was not a crony of the
administration that appointed him. Ms. Miers may be qualified -- we may
never know -- but describing her as a "crony" is not a political
judgment. It's a fact.
Stanley
=================================<
Stanley R. Conrad, JD/MLS
Reference / Special Collections Librarian Rittenberg Law Library St.
John's University School of Law 8000 Utopia Parkway
Jamaica, NY 11439
conrads@stjohns.edu
718-990-2012 (voice)
718-990-6649 (fax)
-----Original Message-----
From: Frye, Nanna [mailto:Nanna.Frye@jud.ca.gov]
Sent: Thu 10/6/2005 6:24 PM
To: Stanley R. Conrad; Samuel E Trosow
Cc: law-lib@ucdavis.edu
Subject: RE: Harriet Miers - Supreme Court Nominee
I am tired of the derogatory statements and intimations
that
Harriet Miers is unqualified solely because she has no prior
judicial
experience. Are you prepared to state that all nominees must
have prior
judicial experience? If so, then you are saying that U.S.
Supreme Court
Justice Lewis Powell was unqualified for the position. Here is
his
biographical information posted by the Supreme Court Historical
Society.
LEWIS F. POWELL, JR., was born in Suffolk, Virginia, on
September 19,
1907, and lived most of his life in Richmond, Virginia. He was
graduated
from Washington and Lee University in 1929 and from Washington
and Lee
University Law School in 1931. In 1932, he received a master's
degree
from Harvard Law School. Powell entered practice with a Richmond
law
firm, where he became a senior partner and continued his
association
until 1971. During World War II, he served in the United States
Army Air
Force in Europe and North America. After the War, Powell resumed
his law
practice. He served as the President of the American Bar
Association
from 1964 to 1965 and of the American College of Trial Lawyers
from 1968
to 1969. In 1966, he served as a member of President Lyndon B.
Johnson's
Crime Commission. On October 21, 1971, President Richard M.
Nixon
nominated Powell to the Supreme Court of the United States. The
Senate
confirmed the appointment on December 6, 1971. Powell served on
the
Supreme Court for fifteen years. He retired on June 26, 1987, at
the age
of seventy-nine.
Justice Powell is not a rare anomaly. One of the
justices for
the court where I work did not have judicial experience prior to
his
appointment and he is a most excellent jurist.
Nanna Frye, Law Librarian
Court of Appeal
San Diego, CA
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-law-lib@ucdavis.edu
[mailto:owner-law-lib@ucdavis.edu] On
Behalf Of Stanley R. Conrad
Sent: Thursday, October 06, 2005 2:42 PM
To: Samuel E Trosow
Cc: law-lib@ucdavis.edu
Subject: RE: Harriet Miers - Supreme Court Nominee
Good point, Sam.
It is of enormous importance to everyone involved in the law --
certainly should be to law librarians. The fact that political
issues
factor into the nomination/confirmation process is wildly off
point.
The outcome of the nomination process here, ferreting out Miers'
qualifications (or lack of them), her possible impact on the law
for the
next generation ... none of this should be trivialized by
labeling the
discussion "political."
Unfortunately, as we've already heard, the administration is
planning to
refuse any/all requests for the work product she produced while
under
Bush's wing, justifying this with "executive privilege."
We're apt to end up knowing much less about her than we knew
about
Roberts when he was confirmed.
Stanley
=================================<
Stanley R. Conrad, JD/MLS
Reference / Special Collections Librarian Rittenberg Law Library
St.
John's University School of Law 8000 Utopia Parkway
Jamaica, NY 11439
conrads@stjohns.edu
718-990-2012 (voice)
718-990-6649 (fax)
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