Truth v. The Machine » Archives » Rudy Backs Kennedy & “Strict Constructionist Judges”

August 31st, 2006 by Gary M. Miller

Giuliani Blog has a great post on Mayor Giuliani’s appearance on behalf of Mark Kennedy at the Town and Country Club in St. Paul the night before last.

Hizzoner spoke extemporaneously on the need for more Senators like Mark Kennedy who are committed to prevailing in the War on Terror and keeping taxes low.

Most strikingly, Giuliani made some very strong remarks about the need for originalist judges that will cheer the heart of every conservative — and go a long way toward assuaging conservative fears about the Mayor’s personal views getting in the way of a commitment to the plain text of the Constitution:

“I don’t understand how you cannot be for strict constructionist judges” (emphasis Rudy’s).

Rudy spoke of his time as a federal prosecutor and how he knows from experience the importance of this issue. He spoke glowingly of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Sam Alito (I believe he mentioned something to the effect of “You have to be happy with the President’s choices of Roberts and Alito” [emphasis Rudy's]). He ended this discussion by stressing that law is to be made by legislatures, not judges who base their opinions on how they happen to feel that day.

Last night provided a tantalizing glimpse into Rudy’s potential 2008 platform. From what I heard it can be summarized in this way: Stay on offense in the War on Terror; Continue the Bush tax cuts and continue to decrease government regulation on business; Seal the borders first, get rid of the felons, drug dealers, and potential terrorists, and require anyone who stays to learn the English Language; and nominate strict constructionist judges like John Roberts and Sam Alito.

Mayor Giuliani did Mark Kennedy an enormous favor by his strong endorsement of the Congressman’s candidacy. He may have done himself a favor by his endorsement of “strict constructionist” judges in the mold of John Roberts and Sam Alito.

Congressman Kennedy seemed to acknowledge as much when he told the crowd that he is excited not only about GOP prospects in 2006 but also in 2008 — to the great delight of those in attendance.

Posted: August 31, 2006 at 7:00 am
Under: 2008, Kennedy | 5 Comments »

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5 Responses to “Rudy Backs Kennedy & “Strict Constructionist Judges””

Truth v. The Machine » Archives » “Functionally Pro-Life” Says:
February 2nd, 2007 at 7:59 am
[...] This week, Viguerie creates a false choice for 2008 — a choice I will disassemble below: It’s late in 2008, and you’re in the voting booth. Rudy Giuliani—yes, pro-abortion choice, pro-gay rights, pro-gun control Rudy Giuliani, that Rudy Giuliani—has won the nomination of a Republican Party desperate for a “hero” candidate who can lead it out of the political wilderness. He never even had the decency to make it easier for you to vote for him by pretending to have a pro-life “conversion” experience, like Mitt Romney, or pretending that he’s been conservative all along, like Senator McCain. (Granted, that would have been quite a stretch for Rudy.) BUT…opposite him at the top of the ballot as the Democratic Party’s nominee is the name that sends shivers down a conservative’s spine…CLINTON! Yes, a double-spectre guaranteed to produce nightmares: Hillary in the Oval Office, Bill messin’ around somewhere else in the White House. What do you do? Oh, there’s a great conservative running on a third-party ticket, telling you all the things you want to hear, promising to do all the things you want done, but the most likely result of a sizeable vote for him is to tip the election over to Hillary. So, what do you do? You tell us. I vote for Giuliani. Without reservation. First, some cavaets. I have not yet concluded that the Mayor is the best choice for 2008. I’m inching toward that conclusion, but not there yet. Should that prove to be my ultimate destination, it will not be because I am desperate for a hero candidate to defeat Hillary. It will be because I have determined Hizzoner will govern as a solid conservative. His record on crime, taxes, and spending in New York are impeccable. ‘But wait’, you protest, ‘I’m a social conservative and I will demand nothing less than a pro-life president’. First, a few reminders are in order. “Pro-life” Ronald Reagan gave you Sandy O’Connor and Tony Kennedy on the Court. “Pro-life” George H.W. Bush gave you Dave Souter and Bush 43 nearly gave you Harriet Miers. A GOP president’s personal position on life has, history shows us, very little to do with the quality of their judicial selections. Which is why I have no fear of what a President Giuliani would do with the federal courts. Dan McLaughlin, writing about Mayor Giuliani at RedState this week came to a similar conclusion: That said, and while I recognize that there are other Life issues on the agenda, the core battlefield for abortion – the battle we need to win before we can fight any others – is in the composition of the Supreme Court. A pro-choicer who appoints good judges is as functionally pro-life as Harry Reid is functionally pro-choice. (I have discussed this issue in much more exhaustive detail before). And while we need to hear much more from him on this issue, there is, thus far, every indication that Rudy is both willing to appoint conservative judges and able to sell them against a hostile Senate – he’s spoken favorably of John Roberts and Samuel Alito, who he knows from their days in the Reagan Justice Department. “Functionally pro-life”. That’s a term you should get comfortable with because it has the added benefit of being true. I was at a Mark Kennedy fundraiser with the Mayor last summer at which time I came a similar observation. “I don’t understand how you cannot be for strict constructionist judges.” Pro-lifers need to ask themselves this: would you prefer POTUS patronizes you with a January phone call on the Mall in Washington at the annual ‘March for Life’ rally or would you prefer that same POTUS appoint judges who will disabuse themselves of fanciful notions and read the plain text of the Constitution — a document that makes no mention of the right to evacuate one’s womb at taxpayer expense or otherwise. I choose the latter. [...]
Truth v. The Machine » Archives » “Functionally Pro-Life” Says:
February 4th, 2007 at 9:58 am
[...] We reported on a similar quote last summer when the Mayor was in town headlining a Mark Kennedy fundraiser. [...]
race42008.com » Blog Archive » Giuliani as Nixon? Says:
July 18th, 2007 at 11:48 am
[...] Gerson does touch on the preeminent anxiety conservatives have with a Giuliani presidency: the federal judiciary and the Constitution. It was precisely the Mayor’s strident defense of “strict constructionism” that first got me excited about his candidacy — just as it was his comments about Roe and federalism that first began to turn me off. So what to make of Giuliani’s judicial appointments? Well, yesterday’s judicial advisory panel was welcome, as was today’s speech in Iowa reaffirming his commitment to originalism. [...]
Giuliani as Nixon? at Conservative Times--Republican GOP news source. Says:
July 18th, 2007 at 11:53 am
[...] Gerson does touch on the preeminent anxiety conservatives have with a Giuliani presidency: the federal judiciary and the Constitution. It was precisely the Mayor’s strident defense of “strict constructionism” that first got me excited about his candidacy — just as it was his comments about Roe and federalism that first began to turn me off. So what to make of Giuliani’s judicial appointments? Well, yesterday’s judicial advisory panel was welcome, as was today’s speech in Iowa reaffirming his commitment to originalism. [...]