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Colorado Senator Wayne Allard met with Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers on Tuesday. He sounds impressed and has only flattering things to say about her, but he’s not yet endorsing her.
While they did not discuss her views on specific issues, Allard reports:
Allard said Miers told him during their 40-minute meeting that the documents delivered to the Senate Judiciary Committee showed a position she took while a candidate for Dallas City Council in 1989 and it wouldn’t affect her objectivity. “I don’t think her beliefs have changed in that regard,” Allard said. “She understands her role as a judge is to review the facts independently and apply the law to them.”
So what did they talk about?
During their meeting, Allard said he asked Miers about her views on the branches of government, her temperament, and ability to put aside her personal views and judge a case on its merits. “She said the right thing, as far as I was concerned,” Allard said. “I want a judge who doesn’t want to legislate from the bench, who deals with the law as it is and not want to create new law.”
Allard provides even more praise for Miers:
Allard said he told Miers that he doesn’t believe that one needs to be an Ivy League graduate to be a good judge, or to have bench experience to be on the Supreme Court. He pointed to Colorado’s example, former Justice Byron White, who was appointed by President Kennedy even though the former football star had no bench experience. “She brings in a fresh perspective as a very qualified litigator,” Allard said.
Allard was quick on the draw to endorse John Roberts as Chief Justice. Why isn’t he doing the same for Miers? Could politics have anything to do with it?