The talking points have gone out and Democrat Senators are blaming the "extreme" right wing of the GOP for Miers withdrawal. they have obviously consinged to the Memory Hole their own opposition to Miers. For example:

Carl Levin (Michigan): 'Well, I think the judicial experience and the lack of courtroom experience works to her disadvantage. ... there have been others who have not been judges, but I'm not sure there have been others that have such a lack of courtroom experience, as well as judicial experience, as apparently she lacks.' (MSNBC's Connected: Coast To Coast, 10/17/05)

Patrick Leahy (Vermont): Leahy: 'What is difficult here is we have the questionnaire, of course, which came up. It was incomplete. It was inadequate. And many senators, both Republicans and Democrats, felt that way.' (fox news' Fox News Sunday, 10/23/05)

'The comments I have heard [about Miers' questionnaire] range from incomplete to insulting. Certainly, it was inadequate and it did not give us enough to prepare for a hearing.' (Sen. Patrick Leahy, press conference, 10/19/05)

'So far, these answers heighten, rather than lessen, concerns about whether, as a Supreme Court Justice, she would be able to maintain independence from this administration and future administrations.' (Los Angeles Times, 10/19/05)

'I probably should have said and also consider somebody outside the White House compound.' (ABC's This Week,10/9/05)

'I think the problem going back to your first question, the president says she is the most qualified person in america to be on the court. She says the president is the most brilliant man she's ever met. It's not being partisan to say that there are some americans who don't agree with either statement.' (ABC's This Week,10/9/05)

'What I do know is that she has a reputation for being loyal to this president, whom she has a long history of serving as a close advisor and in working to advance his objectives.' (press release, 10/3/05)

Barbara Boxer (California): Boxer: '[Miers has taken] the most extreme position of anyone i have ever known on abortion, assuming she believes that there ought to be a constitutional ban on abortion which would make it a crime except if a woman's life is at stake.' (Associated Press, 10/20/05)

'This is a very troubling nomination. Not only because we don't know too much except that this is a good friend of the president who was in charge of the search committee and she wound up picking herself ...' (Fox News Live, 10/18/05)

'The president has selected a loyal political ally without a judicial record to sit on the highest court in the land.' (press release, 10/3/05)

Charles Schumer (New York): 'Yes, i was extremely disappointed in that. In the questionnaire ... one of the questions was to talk about her activities in the white house. ... and she gave virtually no answers about her five years in the white house. Now, that experience is the most dispositive, more than being a civil corporate litigator, on what kind of judge she would be. She has to be more forthcoming than that.' (PBS' Newshour 10/19/05)

"Frankly, I found the questionnaire as a whole disappointing in terms of not answering questions, in terms of not being clear. I don't know if the vagueness was accurate or not.'  (PBS' Newshour 10/19/05)

'My first conversation with john roberts was far more illuminating than this conversation was ... she is not a constitutional lawyer, she never purported to be a constitutional lawyer, but she clearly needs some time to learn about these cases ...' (Newsday, 10/18/05)

Just a sample. There's much more.

Thomas Lifson  10 27 05