Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) slammed the arrogance and patronization that has been alive and well at Judge Samuel Alito’s confirmaton hearings. Watch the video here at The Political Teen.
Graham was a Senator for who I had high hopes, and even though I’ve been disappointed with him (especially on the “Gang of 14″ sell out), he was absolutely right on today with his rebuke during the hearings.
Here’s a transcript of Graham’s statement:
GRAHAM: …Are you really a closet bigot?
ALITO: I’m not any kind of a bigot, I’m not.
GRAHAM: No, sir, you’re not. And you know why I believe that? Not because you just said it — but that’s a good enough reason, because you seem to be a decent, honorable man. I have got reams of quotes from people who have worked with you, African American judges — I’ve lost my quotes.
Judge Higginbotham — I don’t know where they’re at. But glowing quotes about who you are, the way you’ve lived your life; law clerks, men and women, black and white, your colleagues who say that Sam Alito, whether I agree with him or not, is a really good man.
You know why I believe you when you say that you disavow those quotes? Because the way you have lived your life and the way you and your wife are raising your children.
Let me tell you this: Guilt by association is going to drive good men and women away from wanting to sit where you’re sitting. And we’re going to go through a bit of this ourselves as congressmen and senators.
People are going to take a fact that we got a campaign donation from somebody who’s found out to be a little different than we thought they were — and our political opponent’s going to say, “Aha, I got you!”
And we’re going to say, “Wait a minute. I didn’t know that. I didn’t take the money for that reason.”
And you know what? I’m going to believe these senators and congressmen for the most part, because that’s the way we do our business. We meet people here every day. We have photos taken with people — and sometimes you wish you didn’t have your photo taken.
But that doesn’t mean that you’re a bad person because of that association.
Judge Alito, I am sorry that you’ve had to go through this. I am sorry that your family has had to sit here and listen to this.
Bravo.
Hat tip: Michelle Malkin
Others blogging about this: Stop the ACLU, Mark in Mexico, Political Pit Bull, Mike’s America, Flopping Aces, Amy Proctor, Charmaine Yoest
Related Toldjah So posts:
- The Alito confirmation hearings: Day three
- The Alito confirmation hearings: Day two
- Alito confirmation hearings - day one
- Alito confirmation hearing promises to be a slugfest
- Leave Judge Alito’s 90 year old mother alone!
- Alito is “extremist” but Ginsburg is a “moderate”
- Planned Parenthood pulls a NARAL with ad about Alito
- Here we go: Alito is ‘anti-civil rights’
- Does Alito have the votes to get confirmed?
- Bush will pick Alito for Supreme Court
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Graham is my Senator and I have not been pleased with his actions lately - till today. I voted for the man, but have been disappointed TILL today. He did a great job. Now, if I can just get him to pay attention to my emails.
Comment by scmommy @ 1/11/2006 - 10:29 pm
Be nice if he’d named the Senators who were tarring Alito. Seems no one in the Senate can speak the truth about their fellows.
Comment by benning @ 1/11/2006 - 10:36 pm
Hi Sister:
I’m mellowing on Lindsey Graham a tad as well (can’t wait for one of the Barabbas Conservatives to call me a RINO).
Everyone in my local GOP county party in SC was upset about his joining the unconstitutional gang of 14.
But after his defense of Alito, and the President’s right to nominate conservative judges, I find it hard to be angry with him.
I especially liked it when he asked something to the effect “Who are we to ask for the definition of mainstream? Senator Kennedy?”
I did my own post on today’s events:
Dem’s Disgrace: Smear Alito to Wife’s Face
http://mikesamerica.blogspot.com/#113703859995111897
If a picture paints a thousand words, the video of Mrs. Alito speaks volumes.
Comment by Mike's America @ 1/12/2006 - 12:02 am
- I so hope the good Italians in Revere beach and South station send Kennedrunk packing when the next election comes up for his seat. The “Senator” belongs in prison, not in the Senate. Maybe he could do just one good thing in his whole miserable existance by asking to be burried as far as possible from Chappaquidick when his liver finally gives out. Today, on National TV he went about as low as its possible to go, and Schummer isn’t far behind.
- Unfortunately the leftwing media will convieniantly forget to mention that he’ll be three times a fool when he opens those boxes at the national archieves, and discovers that Judge Alioto’s name is not to be found in the material. Judge Napolitano on FOX, debunked this whole scam days ago. But the Dembulbs are so desperate for any way possible to block his nomination, they’ll stop at nothing, including attempts to simply smear Alito in any way they can.
- One of the things that is so obvious a door stop couldn’t help noticing, is the lawlessness the Liberals seemed ready and willing to engage in for any trumpted up reason they can dish out. Apparently its not an over statement to say Marx is alive and well in the left today. Their standard response everytime they’re called out on their actions, and the ludicrious things they do almost on a daily basis is: “We don’t do anything that you Republicans don’t do as well”.
- Thats total BS. I don’t recall any Dem Election headquarters being shot up, or precinct workers having their arms broken by party thugs, slashed tires, or screamdowns/pie attacks by conservative students on campass, when Liberal speakers appear. Its just more of the “party lies” in the name of the cause, when they continue to deny responsibility for all the stupid things they’ve said and done since 9/11.
- I’m to the point where the only thing I would say to the feckless left is: “What in the world were you exposed to that made you that way, because I want to stay the hell away from it”. More and more people are beginning to see the lefts ideological underpinnings as a litteral illness of heart and spirit.
- Bang -
Comment by Big Bang Hunter @ 1/12/2006 - 12:18 am
I’ve said it before. It’s McCarthyism (aka witchhunts). It is despicable. Liberal leaders who have used this tactic have not learned that it is NOT OK because their liberals rank-and-file are egging them on and are diseased with “can’t get along with ‘em” no how now way.
While Bush had 11% increases in the education budget and basically had Ted Kennedy write the education NCLB budget and act he has been attacked fiercely. While Bush was the first president to offer federal funding for stem cell research he has been attacked fiercely. On every thing and every issue that Bush has done it has been to the left of center (except tax cuts for ALL income tax payers) and he has been called all kinds of names including extremist.
The left needs to start offering solutions and working together with others to solve problems this country faces including terrorism instead of making it harder for the war on terrorism.
Our lives depend on it.
Comment by Baklava @ 1/12/2006 - 12:26 am
I don’t know what’s more pathetic, the outrageous lines of questioning put forth by the Democrat imbeciles on the committee, or their pathetic inability to see that they are getting their clocks cleaned by Alito and adjust their attitudes accordingly.
These guys can’t even think for themselves anymore. All they are is a bunch of water carriers for the likes of NARAL.
They’re too clueless to even be humiliated by their performance. How else can you explain their relentless barrage of obvious nonsense?
Comment by Alex Nunez @ 1/12/2006 - 12:56 am
- Alex… Can you say f-u-n-d-i-n-g and use it in a sentence. Cheesy grandstanding performances like Kennedy, Dean, Pelosi, Reid, Schummer, and the rest of the left of reality players engage in daily, sends shivers up and down the spines of their mesmerized “hive thinker” moonies, and makes the cash register ring.
- Bang
Comment by Big Bang Hunter @ 1/12/2006 - 1:29 am
As a revered lawyer once said:
“When you have the facts. Pound the facts!… When you don’t have the facts. Pound the table!”
The Dems have been pounding the table for three days on live televison. Blissfully carrying out the orders of their Socialist Special Interest Puppeteers to Derail Alito…. Or Else!
They have yet to lay a single glove on Alito.
Filibuster?… Ain’t gonna happen!
Jack.
Comment by Jack Deth @ 1/12/2006 - 2:20 am
I posted about Lindsey’s exchange too, as part of my article on “The Swimmer’s” day at the hearings. I titled the article Defanged, Discredited & Desparate.
Here’s my favorite quote from the article:
Senator Kennedy, it seems, also is discredited if he wants to call people sexist, seeing as how he belonged to a Harvard group called “The Owl” which didn’t allow women as members until “it was forced to do so during the 1980s”, according to the Washington Times’ Charles Hurt. Kennedy spokeswoman Laura Capps said it was an entirely different matter. “No one can question Senator Kennedy’s commitment to equality, justice and civil rights,” she said. Regrettably, Mary Jo Kopechne was unavailable to rebut Ms. Capps’ statement.
Comment by Gary Gross @ 1/12/2006 - 3:57 am
I thought I was completely sick of the Dems before yesterday’s disgraceful performance. I was wrong.
Comment by CavalierX @ 1/12/2006 - 6:52 am
Sen. Graham is not my sneator becasue I am from IL, but I really appreciate and admire him, while being a shamed of my own committee member, Dick Durbin.
I think Graham has done a wonderful job and I do like the “Group of 14″ compromise deal becasue it has allowed more work to get done rather than causing a stoppage at a time of war. If it became necessary Graham will vote yes on the nuclear option. I have always been against theis option, however, if the Denocrats filibuster because of abortion I will hesitantly support it.
I am glad that we have at least one gentleman on the committee that was willing to apologize for the brutal process. The question is: How do we fix the process? This is the million dollar question becasue the process has gotten out of hand.
Comment by Judy Kratochvil @ 1/12/2006 - 8:15 am
Judy, first, get rid of Senator Dirtbag. Actually, if you could cleanse the Illinois Democrat party of their goons, thugs, and thieves, I may feel better about crossing the river from Iowa each day.
Comment by PCD @ 1/12/2006 - 9:05 am
I watched this yesterday and I walked away thinking how can we justify $175,000/yr plus retirement on top of that for this bunch!
Yes I thought Graham was the perfect person to calm the situation down, but why did it get to that? How much time has been spent reviewing an obscure club that the man sent money to? How many of us have sent money into our schools without really looking at what it is for? I have.
The reason the man gave..ROTC, which is how the man got through Princeton btw,was lost in this entire discussion and as usual, we need to allege bigotry where it does not belong. On monday I kept hearing the phrase “Super Duper Precedant”, so I e-mailed my attorney. I asked if this was an actual legal term, was this phrase coined by an adult with actual legal credentials and when do you use SDP? In a super duper case? I got a reply asking if it was Kennedy and if it was, he probably thought it was a happy hour special! But no Pam, I have not heard that phrase, nor do I intend to say it out loud!
This is just a sad example of what we pay a lot of money for.
Comment by Pam @ 1/12/2006 - 9:36 am
This guy has a permanent big brown nose even for a partisan. Peace
Comment by steve @ 1/12/2006 - 4:04 pm
I don’t think I would call it a brown nose…more like a big heart. Sen. Graham just did and said what most Americans were thinking, even those of us who may not agree with Alito’s political ideology (or at least what the media says his political ideology is).
Comment by Louise @ 1/17/2006 - 12:03 pm