The "Flim-Flam" Men
By William Bailey (02/13/03)
In 1967, George C. Scott played the role of a con man working the backroads of the South in the movie, "The Flim Flam Man". Guess what, there's a new version that's available for all to see even as it is in progress.
Turn on C-Span 2 and watch the U.S. Senate and the handling of the nomination of Miguel Estrada to be a Circuit Court of Appeals Judge for the District of Columbia. You will see the 2003 remake of this movie in progress.
Obviously, the cast has changed a bit. Now in the leading roles are Senators Schumer, Durbin, Leahy, and Reid (Nevada). They just flat don't want Mr. Estrada to be confirmed. But . . . you see, they know they don't have the votes to see that the nomination is voted down. So . . . we are involved in "flim flam". They are engaged in a first in the U.S. Senate . . . the filibustering of a nominee for appointment to a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Never happened before.
I know . . . I wrote a piece yesterday about this, but this whole situation should infuriate all Americans. It doesn't matter whether you want to see the nominee confirmed or not. What should really tear at you is the arrogance of some Senators who hide behind "flimsy" excuses for why they don't want this man confirmed. I stated those in the earlier piece.
And, to top it off . . . this group is hiding behind that majestic document, The Constitution of the United States and the "advise and consent" clause. But, what they really don't want you to know is that they are violating that very clause by their current actions. The words are plain . . . the intent of the Founders is clear . . . the President submits a nominee, the Senate considers and then either confirms or rejects the nominee. THERE IS NO CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISION TO HOLD THE NOMINEE HOSTAGE ON THE FLOOR OF THE U.S. SENATE.
Regardless of what might be stated on the floor of the Senate as "reasons" to be opposed to the nominee, make no mistake about it. The fear is that, should this nominee be confirmed, he might well be the next nominee to fill a vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court. That's what's behind all of this folks. Plain and simple.
I don't know about anybody else, but I've about had it with those who swear an oath to The Constitution of the United States and then take office and do everything they can to destroy the very thing to which they swore allegiance. (Yep . . . I know . . . I keep riding this horse. But, guess what ? I'm gonna' keep on ridin' this horse).
I won't take your time by "re-hashing" all that I said in the earlier piece yesterday. But, if you would like to see what's really going on . . . tune in to C-Span 2 and watch your U.S. Senate in action. Now . . . for some with weak stomachs, you might want to have a "barf" bag handy. For . . . it is not a pretty sight.
This is not really about Mr. Estrada. He just happens to caught up in the "moment". This is about blatant, arrogant, and raw political power combined with the insanity of the rules of the U.S. Senate.
If the "flim flam" folks are successful in either defeating this nomination or creating so much furor that the nomination gets "pulled down", they might well think about the old expression, "Be careful what you ask for, you just might get it". The number of Hispanic voters in this country is growing by leaps and bounds. This might not be so soon forgotten.
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