As published in the

Pasadena Star-News - October 12, 2005

San Gabriel Valley Tribune - October 12, 2005

Whittier Daily News - October 12, 2005

Where's Bush's advice on Miers nomination?

by

Gerald Plessner

If you were Harriet Miers and your friend and client of ten years called you into the Oval Office and told you that you were his choice to fill the vacancy on the United States Supreme Court, what would you say?

How about, "Mr. President, I am deeply flattered but that is the last thing you should do. There are hundreds of lawyers in America qualified for that job and I am not one of them."

"I have been your close friend and personal lawyer for ten years now and I have to be honest with you. If you do that, people across the political spectrum will go crazy. You have so many problems right now. That is the last thing you should do."

George W. Bush exhibits a deep appreciation for the instincts and intellect of bright, assertive women. He is to be admired for that. Women have a special ability to see through the fluff and deceit, focusing on the real problem.

And they can be refreshingly candid with men they admire or love. Self-confident men admire bright and assertive women and most seek out the advice of the important women in their lives.

But is there no woman around George W. Bush who is able to tell him --- nicely --- when he is about to make a mistake? Is there no one in the White House, female or male, who is not an enabler of his penchant for dumb moves?

Is the White House so depleted of talent or so intimidated by the president's rumored bad temper, that no one can offer a contrary idea or a new strategy?

Laura Bush is to all appearances a strong woman. Isn't she able to tell the president when he is headed for trouble? What do they talk about over dinner? After two terms as Texas governor and five years as president, can't the First Lady do anything to help her husband get his "momentum" back?

The Republican Party spin machine is running on empty. The public is getting tired of hearing the White House blame every failure on someone or something else.

Karl Rove is probably too distracted by his meetings with lawyers dealing with his role in the Plame affair. As of last week, Rove was making his third appearance before the grand jury investigating the leaks of national security information.

And what about vice president Dick Cheney of storied Machiavellian skill? Is he incapacitated, or worse, alienated from his leader, whom he more than anyone else made president?

Or is the vice president keeping a low profile in anticipation of the possible indictment of "Scooter" Libby, his chief of staff, for leaking an undercover agent's name to the press?

Where is the president's chief of staff, Andrew Card? Can't he talk frankly to his boss?

And as if the problems of the president's own making aren't bad enough, there are House majority leader Tom DeLay's indictment for money laundering and the possible indictment of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's for insider trading of stock in his family's hospital business.

And finally, there is the clamor from his fellow Evangelicals and Conservatives who want veto power on Supreme Court appointees from a president they thought was one of them.

It is bad enough when the American people begin to question the president's judgement. And the selection of Harriet Miers for the Supreme Court is a terrible lapse in judgement.

But a weakened president places the United States and the world in potential danger when our international enemies and competitors view him as ill-advised and incompetent. It could further weaken our coalition in the fight against terrorism, and much worse, embolden the terrorists eager to do us harm.

About the author: Gerald Plessner is a Southern California businessman who writes regularly on issues of politics and culture. He would be pleased to hear from you and may be contacted at gerald@geraldplessner.com.