At long last

After four years of mostly needless delay, the Senate has confirmed Priscilla Owen by a vote of 56-43. Three members of the gang of 14 crossed party lines. Senator Chafee voted no; Senators Byrd and Landrieu voted yes. The Senate will now move on to a debate on John Bolton.
JOHN adds: It is sad that the Democrats have voted en masse against a judge who by any rational standard should be non-controversial. Owen was re-elected to her position as a Justice of the Texas Supreme Court by an overwhelming majority, and received the highest possible rating from the American Bar Association. By contrast, Ruth Ginsburg, whose history as an ACLU lawyer and activist could have made her a more legitimately controversial figure, was confirmed on a 97-3 vote. Historically, Republicans have never adopted the Democratic tactic of first smearing, then voting against judicial nominees with whom they disagree politically. It will be interesting to see what the Republicans do next time we have a Democratic President.
It isn’t just Democratic Senators who slander Republican judges, either; for an absurdly negative view of Justice Owen, see this Reuters “FACTBOX”.