Statement By 60 Plus Association President Jim Martin Following Rose Garden Ceremony And Address By President George W. Bush

Arlington, VA — Today, May 9th, marks the two-year anniversary of President Bush’s nomination of Miguel A. Estrada to fill a vacancy on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Two years ago, the 60 Plus Association said ‘Bravo!’ when that nomination was first announced.

But now we say ‘Shame!’ on those Democrats who have turned their collective backs on this nomination and the honorable process expressed 216 years ago by our Founding Fathers.

Every Senator is entitled to their opinion on whether Miguel Estrada is sufficiently qualified to hold the office. We have no quarrel with that. Where we draw the line is how this candidate is being held to a standard that far exceeds the ‘advice and consent’ intention clearly written in Article. II. of the Constitution.

Mr. Estrada would be the first Hispanic in history to sit on the District’s Court of Appeals, viewed by many as the most important and prestigious Court of Appeals in the land. He has received a “well qualified” rating by the American Bar Association, their highest possible evaluation.

But this seems to mean nothing to the Democrats. They’d rather go ahead and filibuster the Estrada nomination because they anticipate their left-wing agenda would not be met by his court findings. Nowhere does it say in our Constitution that a nominee must first pass a litmus test in order to appease certain groups whose social agendas must come first — and then, and only then, may the vote for confirmation be held.

60 Plus echoes the sentiments of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) who claimed, ‘Our colleagues on the other side of the aisle are denying the Senate its constitutional right…this is unjustified obstruction.’

The 60 Plus Association says — as we’ve been saying for two years now — that the Democrats must stop this mindless filibuster harangue and do the right thing; move forward with a simple vote up or down. Mr. Estrada has been waiting two years now. The American judicial system, already severely under-manned, has been held for legislative ransom for two years, as well. For the good of the country, it’s time to vote.

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