Industry Figure Tom Chappell

Last Friday, on my favorite morning newscast, The Rachel Maddow Show, Rachel made the prediction that the Harriet Miers nomination was going to be scuppered, and that the excuse used would be that the Senators were insisting on seeing the documents of her work at the White House. Rachel credited a piece by conservative Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer:

Read Charles Krauthammer’s column
“Miers: The Only Exit Strategy”
October 21, 2005

Listen to Friday’s Rachel Maddow Show
October 21, 2005

On Monday, a reporter asked George W. Bush about whether or not they had any contingency plans waiting in the wings in case Miers didn’t work out, and out of the blue, Bush answered that he was concerned that so many Senators on both sides wanted to see those documents.

Q: Mr. President, as a newspaper reported on Saturday, is the White House working on a contingency plan for the withdrawal of Harriet Miers’ nomination?

BUSH: Harriet Miers is — is an extraordinary woman. She was a legal pioneer in Texas. She was ranked one of the top 50 women lawyers in the United States on a consistent basis. [That last is a lie, by the way -TJC] She is — look, I understand that people want to know more about her, and that’s the way the process should work.

Recently, requests, however, have been made by Democrats and Republicans about paperwork and — out of this White House that would make it impossible for me and other Presidents to be able to make sound decisions…

Nobody had even mentioned the documents in the press conference, the question wasn’t even about that, and he brought up the subject himself.

Rachel Maddow’s comment in response: “Harriet Miers’s nomination is over!” (Her segment on this subject, which includes the above Bush quote, was really quite funny):

Listen to Tuesday’s Rachel Maddow Show (segment starts at 13:46)
October 25, 2005

And today, Harriet Miers withdrew her nomination. Bush’s office issued a statement:

It is clear that Senators would not be satisfied until they gained access to internal documents concerning advice provided during her tenure at the White House — disclosures that would undermine a President’s ability to receive candid counsel. Harriet Miers’s decision demonstrates her deep respect for this essential aspect of the Constitutional separation of powers…

Read the Full Article in The Wall Street Journal
“Harriet Miers Withdraws Nomination to High Court”
October 27, 2005

Way to call it, Rachel!