That’s the title of my new Confirmation Tales post, which is subtitled “Patrick Leahy’s ridiculous ‘anti-Catholic’ smear.” Here are a couple of early paragraphs:
Conrad was a model candidate by the standards that Senate Democrats had espoused. But Democrats used their control of the Senate and of the Judiciary Committee to deny Conrad a hearing over the remaining year-and-a-half of Bush’s presidency.
The Democratic obstruction of Conrad’s nomination illustrates several basic lessons. First, a Senate majority can use simple inaction to defeat a nomination. Second, Senate Democrats were aligned with their most liberal activists. Third, some seats become especially attractive to fight over.