CAN BUSH CONTINUE TO SHAPE THE DIRECTION OF THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY?, PART II

Part I was last night. I was trying to make the case not just that Bush is an incompetent and venal doofus who is still under the impression that be is entitled to appoint every hideous monstrosity he can dig up to the federal judiciary. I was also attempting to make the points that Harry Reid and the Democrats should treat him the way he deserves to be treated-- a lame duck with no power base who is reviled for his incompetence and tyrannical style of governance.

This morning's Washington Post reminded me about something I wasn't considering. I was so busy worrying about the Leslie Southwick nomination and my fears of Reid allowing this to slip in that I neglected to mention how the Bush Regime has routinely cast aside legal practices to "emphasize partisan political ties over expertise in recent years in selecting the judges who decide the fate of hundreds of thousands of immigrants."

Outrageous and illegal appointments of political hacks without even a semblance of qualification (by Abu Gonzo on behalf of the Regime) "have begun to reshape a system of courts in which judges, ruling alone, exercise broad powers-- deporting each year nearly a quarter-million immigrants, who have limited rights to appeal and no right to an attorney."

Beginning in 2004 two contemptible Regime hacks-- both having recently left government service in disgrace-- Kyle Sampson and Monica Goodling, led a campaign, a successful one, apparently, to "jettison the civil service process that traditionally guided the selections in favor of political considerations."

Some judges and other immigration experts are highly critical of the administration's practice of placing political allies on the courts. "When we start seeing people who look like [they're fulfilling] someone's political debt get these positions, it starts to become disturbing," said Crystal Williams, a deputy director of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

"Immigration law is very complex," said Denise Slavin, an immigration judge since 1995 in Miami, who is president of the National Association of Immigration Judges, a union. "So generally speaking, it's very good to have someone coming into this area with [an] immigration background. It's very difficult, for those who don't, to catch up."