Bush Fires Howitzer in Culture War?

I have been paying awfully close attention to the kerfluffle on both sides of the aisle concerning the nomination of Harriet Miers. As you have probably noticed, I have mellowed somewhat and am actually encouraged to a degree. The left is beginning to crawfish on their position as a picture of Miers begins to develop.

The right is also beginning to feel more comfortable with her excepting some big names who appear to be far more interested in the general public noticing their over the top tantrums than a thoughtful dialogue. Ann Coulter comes to mind. (Ann remember the left do not buy your books).

Reflecting this morning as I sipped my first cup of coffee and browsing the comments left to me last night on FR a light bulb suddenly appeared over my desheveled head. What if Bush had this whole thing choreographed from the start. He knows Miers, her down to earth fundamentalist values, her conservative temperment, her staunch religious conviction and her tendency to read law in the vernacular. He knew that at least some Dims had voiced acceptance even support for this nominee in discussions, so they were essentially neutered. But they didn't know her like he did, they hadn't done their homework and therefor were oblivious to the fact that this lady was one tenacious fundamental Christian whos dedication to strict constuctionism was surpassed only by her conviction to Scripture.

He realized that at least initially he would catch hell from the right, but once they knew her as he did, they'd come around. Sooner or later he also knew that the left would begin to understand who this women was and what they had stepped into. They would come to the horrifying revelation that they were about to put a bible thumping, pro-business, rigid fundamentalist social conservative on the bench. Behind closed doors the ranting from the left would be hysterical "My God, what have we done".

There options would be few. Attack on her percieved lack of pedigree, and far more importantly, attack her Christian beliefs as an overriding disqualification. The former has no teeth, the latter fraught with peril, and therin lies the rub. Bush is going to get his battle in the Senate but it's going to be on his terms and the stakes..... immense. The battle will pit the spiritualist against the secularists and given the makeup of the American populace and untenable position for the left.

He gets a justice perfectly in line with his beliefs and the Dims in the Senate come off looking like religion hating zealots who have nothing but disdain for people of faith. This is a battle that has been smoldering for years and what better time for it to erupt into flame than during televised heraings of a SCOTUS nominee. For the Republicans it will be a rhetorical goldmine that would likely pay dividends for years to come. For the Democrats it's a lose lose proposition. They lose a SCOTUS seat and look exceedingly bad doing it.

Did the Dims get monumentally suckered? The only other alternative to this theory is that Bush just wimped out and picked a milktoast moderate because he was scared of a fight with the Senate. That he compromised all that he believes a SCOTUS nomineee should be in order to avoid confrontation. That, folks I am not ready to believe nor should you. If that's the case than you and I and 52% of the population were hoodwinked last November. Most of us believe we were not and I feel very shortly that belief will be vindicated............IN SPADES.

Musing Minds has some interesting background via Beldar