The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #74691   Message #1304818
Posted By: Nerd
23-Oct-04 - 12:00 PM
Thread Name: BS: Pre-Election Post-election thoughts
Subject: RE: BS: Pre-Election Post-election thoughts
pdq is full of shit as to the vote in the Supreme Court. There WAS a 7-2 vote, which was on whether the Florida recount procedure being followed when the Supreme Court intervened was the right procedure. But the decision on whether to stop the recount entirely was 5-4.

Here are excerpts from the 4 dissenting opinions

Breyer: The Court was wrong to take this case. It was wrong to grant a stay. It should now vacate that stay and permit the Florida Supreme Court to decide whether the recount should resume.

Ginsburg: In sum, the Court's conclusion that a constitutionally adequate recount is impractical is a prophecy the Court's own judgment will not allow to be tested. Such an untested prophecy should not decide the Presidency of the United States. I dissent.

Souter: The Court should not have reviewed either Bush v. Palm Beach County Canvassing Bd., ante, p. ___ (per curiam), or this case, and should not have stopped Florida's attempt to recount all undervote ballots, see ante at ___, by issuing a stay of the Florida Supreme Court's orders during the period of this review, see Bush v. Gore, post at ____ (slip op., at 1). If this Court had allowed the State to follow the course indicated by the opinions of its own Supreme Court, it is entirely possible that there would ultimately have been no issue requiring our review, and political tension could have worked itself out in the Congress following the procedure provided in 3 U.S.C. ยง 15. The case being before us, however, its resolution by the majority is another erroneous decision.

Stevens: Time will one day heal the wound to that confidence that will be inflicted by today's decision. One thing, however, is certain. Although we may never know with complete certainty the identity of the winner of this year's Presidential election, the identity of the loser is perfectly clear. It is the Nation's confidence in the judge as an impartial guardian of the rule of law. I respectfully dissent.