×
Jon Chait and Publius correctly make fun of this disingenuous plea for civility and judicial restraint from Harvie Wilkinson, who, now that a Democratic president has taken charge, thinks that ideology shouldn't be a major factor in judicial appointments. What an amazing coincidence that it would occur to him now! In the wake of Bush v. Gore it's incredible that anyone is still trying to sell the idea that conservative judging has anything to do with restraint, but I guess the lie has worked long enough that they might as well keep selling it. I particularly enjoyed this final whine about preserving the civility of Wilkinson's dominated-by-reactionary-Republicans Fourth Circuit:
--Scott Lemieux
To be sure, there will be change and disagreement on the 4th Circuit, but I pray that coming appointments to our court will not cause the doors of communication and compromise to slam shut. A polarized 4th Circuit would bring no discernible public benefit. At the end of the day, it's not lines of battle; it's not us and them. Americans are in this together, and that includes the courts.It's amazing how easy it is to be civil and keep those doors of communication open when you know that you're going to win on every contested issue, isn't it? Personally, I'd like to see WIlkinson and his conservative brethren be all gentlemanly in dissent instead ...
--Scott Lemieux
