November 1, 2005

Judiciary

Pragmatic Reason for Chafee to Support Alito

Marc Comtois

According to Michael Barone:

The political risks of opposing an Italian-American are therefore probably less than in 1983 [when Judge Antonin Scalia was nominated and confirmed]. But they're not zero. I wonder whether Tom Carper of Delaware (where 7 percent of the population in the 2000 census said they were of Italian ancestry), Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey (14 percent), Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York (11 percent), Christopher Dodd and Joe Lieberman of Connecticut (14 percent), and Jack Reed of Rhode Island (14 percent) really want to go to the length of supporting a filibuster against an Italian-American judge with sterling credentials and majority support in the Senate. I'm pretty sure that Lincoln Chafee, facing a conservative opponent in the Republican primary in Rhode Island, the state with the nation's highest percentage of Italian-Americans, doesn't want to oppose Alito. If I were giving him political advice, I would certainly advise him not to do so. As much as one quarter of Republican primary voters there will have Italian names or Italian ancestors.
Barone also provides this statement:
The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) applauds President George W. Bush on his nomination of Samuel A. Alito Jr., a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, to the position of associate justice of the United States Supreme Court.Judge Alito, whose father immigrated to the United States from Italy, is highly respected in the judicial community for his constitutional knowledge and his impeccable character.President Bush has chosen an individual whose intellect and qualifications are above reproach. We are proud and fortunate that he shares our Italian heritage. Washington, D.C. Oct. 31, 2005.
In heavily Roman Catholic (and Italian-American) Rhode Island, can Chafee afford not to support such a well-qualified judicial candidate? Will concern for his "pro-choice" interest group rating prevail over political calculation? On the other hand, despite what Barone may think, I have little doubt that Senator Reed will pay little heed to this sort of "identity politics."

2:00 PM
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Since when has Chafee been pragmatic? He almost always picks the path of most resistance. I actually do consider him to be principled. The problem is, the principles are usually those belonging to the other party.

As for the Italian outreach argument, when has Mr. WASP Incarnate ever done anything to reach out to that community? And yes, Italian-Americans are a sizable part of the RI electorate, esp. in the Republican Party (including yours truly). I'll believe it when I see it.

Common sense and plain logic would seem to dictate that this is a "must" vote for Chafee to support. I just can't see how he can appeal to Republican primary voters, continue to garner national GOP support, and snub the president's nominee like that.

He's in a really bad situation. It's almost a lose-lose proposition, at least insofar as he's concerned. In some way, I actually feel bad for him. About the only guarantee in all of this, is that he'll drag out his eventual decision to the very end, after belaboring, bemoaning, and otherwise dragging the rest of us through it with him.

Posted by: Will at November 2, 2005 5:31 AM

How can Chafee vote yes -- he will lose his NARAL support -- he can't stand up to the pressure they will put on him. Ralph Neas is planning an assault on chafee and other rep senators in blue states

Posted by: tom at November 2, 2005 10:46 AM

i cannot see chafee supporting Alito. Tom is right, it comes down to his support for NARAL. In fact, I would be surprised if he were to confirm Alito.

Posted by: robert at November 2, 2005 12:59 PM