Kerry pushes Alito filibuster

…. while in Switzerland (let’s hope he wasn’t skiing!). Via the NYT:

Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts could not attend the Senate debate on the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. on Thursday. He was in Davos, Switzerland, mingling with international business and political leaders at the World Economic Forum.

But late Thursday afternoon, Mr. Kerry began calling fellow Democratic senators in a quixotic, last-minute effort for a filibuster to stop the nomination.

Democrats cringed and Republicans jeered at the awkwardness of his gesture, which almost no one in the Senate expects to succeed.

[…]

Kerry’s call for a filibuster – an effort to stop confirmation by refusing to close debate and hold a vote – was joined by his fellow Democrat from Massachusetts, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.

I’m reminded of what former Senator Zell Miller (D-GA) said about the two Massachusetts Senators in his speech before the RNC Sept. 1, 2004:

And, no pair has been more wrong, more loudly, more often than the two Senators from Massachusetts, Ted Kennedy and John Kerry.

(Flashback: Click here to watch that speech in its entirety – it was my favorite speech from the whole convention :) )

It seems that, at least on this issue, some Democratic Senators agree that Kerry is wrong in trying to push for the filibuster of Judge Alito. Again, from the NYT:

Senator Harry Reid, the Democratic leader, sounded almost apologetic about Mr. Kerry’s statements.

“No one can complain on this matter that there hasn’t been sufficient time to talk about Judge Alito, pro and con,” Mr. Reid said on the Senate floor. “I hope that this matter will be resolved without too much more talking.”

And on Friday, Senator Joseph Biden, a Delaware Democrat and member of the Judiciary Committee who voted against Mr. Alito there, said he would not support a filibuster and doubted one would happen.

Speaking in a televised interview on CNN, Mr. Biden said that he thought the Republicans would inevitably force a decision, so Democrats should use their votes to “make a statement” without seeking a delay.

Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV), in a rare moment of actually being right on an issue, slammed the Alito confirmation hearings themselves. Michelle Malkin has the video.

Kerry offered a defense of his call for a filibuster on the liberal blog Daily Kos.

Is this guy not the gift that keeps on giving or what? I think after the 2004 elections, Kerry is still trying to prove that he has some relevancy on the national stage. I think the lack of support that he has received on this issue shows that he doesn’t have much, if any.

Related: Make sure to check out Doug at Below The Beltway’s post about the NYT’s stance on an Alito filibuster. Heh.

Read more via Ed Whelan at NRO’s Bench Memos, Captain Ed, Betsy Newmark, Polipundit, Outside the Beltway, The Moderate Voice, Confederate Yankee, bRight and Early, RightWinged.com, Iowa Voice, Gary Gross guest blogging at California Conservative, Say Anything

Prior Toldjah So posts on Alito:

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