Is it OrthoMom? Good guess, but no: That's Sandra Day O'Conner, the Supreme who announced her resignation last week.
I liked O'Conner. She was my kind of justice: Smart, pragmatic, and a concensus builder. But I'm drooling about the opportunity her resignation presents. Because after the preachers in the Senate confirm the woman-hating wingnut GWB will likely nominate, the fun starts.
I take it as a given that Roe v. Wade is dead. The last time Roe was tested, it was upheld 5-4 with O'Conner in the majority. Without O'Conner, the Roe supporting majority is history. But unlike many liberals, I won't be sorry to see Roe go.
First, it wasn't very good law. But worse, for thirty years Roe has given the wingnuts something to hide behind. In Alabama, Kentucky and all the other god-drunk states, legislators are free to inveigh against Roe and the Court, without paying any political consequences. Which is lucky for them, because in Gallup polling since 1975 about 80 percent of respondents have consistently favored either legal abortion in all circumstances (21 to 34 percent) or legal abortion under some circumstances (48 to 61 percent). Yet because the Court has removed the abortion question from the legislative realm, wingnut politicians can cater to their pro-life base by proposing policies that, if ever actually implemented, would render those politicians quite unpopular.
If Roe goes, they will finally have to put up or shut up.
