Monday, December 19, 2011

It Wasn't Republicans Who Stopped the Green Nomination

For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

And if you're a corrupt District Attorney who falsely prosecuted two people you knew to be innocent and wrecked their lives in exchange for a federal judgeship ... then, apparently, you can lose your own soul in exchange for nothing.

Sometimes there is justice in this life.

But the real story of why the U.S. Senate and the White House scuttled Mike Green's judicial nomination has nothing to do with partisan games on Capitol Hill, or action by Republicans.   Quite the opposite.

National Level

Republicans in the U.S. Senate only infrequently use threat of filibuster to stop the President's judicial nominees, and then -- and this is the important part -- only for nominees to the Circuit Courts of Appeals.   Not for District Court appointments, such as Green's.   They're slowing some of those nominations, but not blocking them.

And they're not the ones who determine the list of nominations "sent back" to the President, as happened to Green.   The Democrats who run the Senate decide that.

Senatorial Democrats could have kept Green on the list of nominations "carried over" to the next session.   They chose not to.

They carried over other District Court nominees.

Democrats control the U.S. Senate, which votes on nominations.   Both U.S. Senators from New York are Democrats, so there wasn't an issue of a senator from the nominee's state putting a "hold" on the nomination, which can happen, and was responsible for a Tulsa district court nominee being sent back.   One of those senators is Charles Schumer, who sits on the Judiciary Committee and is past Chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

With that clout, with the majority, and with Senate Republicans saving their filibistering for nominees to federal appeals courts, not district courts, Democratic Senators could have made it happen for Green.

They chose not to.

Schumer is as happy a partisan warrior as anyone on Capitol Hill.   If Senate Republicans were killing the Green nomination, he'd have been highly vocal about it, to say the least.   Instead, we heard his suprisingly lukewarm comments last week.   Today, making lemonade out of the lemon, he's made the obligatory boilerplate statement saying Republicans scuttled it, the usual stuff of Washington's partisan miasma.

Local Level

Republican insiders in Monroe County, including those at the highest level, wanted Green to be confirmed.   Better that, they reasoned, than having him around as a potential Democratic candidate for a state judgeship or other office.

Washington is far outside the bubble of media protection the Democrat and Chronicle provides its favorites, like Green, Bob Duffy, Louise Slaughter, Joe Morelle, David Gantt and other undesirables.   Outside of it, the process crushed Green like a bug.

However, back home and at large, and back inside the protective media bubble, he's a potentially formidable candidate for Democrats to run for something.   So Monroe County Republicans felt it was better to have him kicked upstairs to the federal bench, and be out of the way.

That's why the County GOP Chairman has said publicly that he supports Green's nomination.   He's speaking for his party, and they mean it.

Part of the reason Green could be a formidable candidate is the fault of Monroe County Republicans.   In one of their occasional moments of testosterone deficiency, County Republicans chose not to pursue ethics charges against Green after his false prosecutions against Andrew Moore and James Smith went down for utter lack of substance.   That's a subject for another time (although we note that it's still not too late to do).

It all begs a single question: W-H-Y-?

Why did the Senate Democratic leadership single out Mike Green's as one of the few District Court nominations they sent back to the White House?

Why didn't Senator Schumer use his considerable clout to push it through?

Why did the White House announce -- very promptly -- that the President would not renominate Green?

Back here, in Rochester's bubble of media protection, WHY? is the question the Democrat and Chronicle doesn't want anybody asking.   Which is why they print such falsehoods as the one in this morning's front-page teaser:   "Republicans sent the nomination back."

No they didn't.   Democrats sent it back.   And a Democratic President said there wouldn't be a re-nomination.

W-H-Y-?


What do Senate leaders and the President know about Mike Green, that the people of Monroe County do not?

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

His lack of ethics and affairs?

Anonymous said...

Green all over the media saying it was the Republicans who prevented his confirmation.

Lying through his teeth that he is not staying in the DA's office in any capacity.

Didn't Doorley remove a few people for him??

Anonymous said...

This is a story from shortly after his confirmation hearing. Neither NY Senator went to the confirmation hearing. They sent a letter.

Try this version,Bob Duffy was trying to kill the nomination in July and, the deal was Theresa Johnson would be nominated. This deal was blessed by David Gantt. Apparently, Duffy and other Democrats has a problem with Green on multiple levels. This deal was done by August...one might ask, what role did Joe Morelle play in it?

Anonymous said...

Interesting how the news media is buying into the "Evil Republicans Did It" spin out of Schumer and Green. Anyone with any knowledge of how the U.S. Senate works (a category that apparently does not include the reporter from the D&C or Bob Lonsberry, both of whom got it totally wrong) knows the Senate Minority does not "send back" nominations; only the Majority can do that. Since Green was approved by the Judiciary Committee with only one dissenting GOP vote, he could have won confirmation if Harry Reid and Chuck Schumer wanted him to be a federal judge. They didn't, so he didn't. The only question is why.

It says something about the quality of Rochester's news outlets that the Mustard Street blog is the only place that's got the basics of government correct.

Anonymous said...

I have several questions, all are based on information, and only act to get Mike Green to address them. First, is it true that the FBI conducted a "field investigation" and, in it's course, did you cover up relationships with women, including the wife of an attorney? Is it also true that you changed your story after being confronted?

Did you write the code of conduct for District Attorneys that forbid endorsements by sitting DA's? If so, why did you do it?

Did you call donors for Sandra Doorley, while knowing it was forbidden by Federal and state law?

Last, but not least...did Sandra allow you to fire ADA's for political purposes, while she sat weeping...or did you do it?

Anonymous said...

Even Bob Lonsberry is perpetuating the lie to help out his best bud Mike Green. Bob knows the details of why Mike Green isn't getting the nomination. He lied to FBI background checkers and instead of getting formally rebutted, all involved (Democrats Chuck Schumer, Joe Morelle and with the support of the Democrat & Chronicle and Lonsberry) are now working tirelessly to cover it up.

With absolutely no proof whatsoever, our local media is wholly blaming Republicans who have no control or power in this matter.

And Democrats claim the GOP is corrupt. I guess if the D&C and Bob Lonsberry back up your lies, it's not corruption. The Democrats clearly have the advantage in corruption accusations here in Rochester.

Lucy said...

Anonymous 8:23,

In fairness to Bob Lonsberry, it's true that his original piece today went with the idea that Green's peddling about local Republicans scuttling the nomination.

However, by early afternoon, in the comments section to his piece, he said this: "Actually, it's clear -- as the day goes forward -- that the Democrats wanted to dump Mike Green. They flushed him. they're using the Republicans as a convenient excuse."

Anonymous said...

Maybe this blog can do an article on the process of how a federal judge gets nominated and confirmed... this would make it clear to the readers that mike green is lying about the republicans blocking his nominations. the republicans had nothing to do with it. its just the public doesn't understand the process and the massive background checks that go in to becoming a federal judge. my suspicion is, knowing him and his unethical behavior, is that he "failed" his background check so to speak. he has no one to blame but himself. And anonymous who asked is sandra doorley was weeping, I know her as well... her heart is as cold as ice- i don't think she has the capacity to be moved to tears or care about anyone bu herself... so i am not sure how true that rumor is. Of the 2, i would honestly rather see Mike still in office over Sandy... Sandy is a horrible person. My vote went to Bill Taylor... all I can say to all the Sandy voters is I told you so.

Anonymous said...

You know, neither Schumer nor Green ever used the word "Republican". Schumer used the term "partisan politics", and Green referenced "local opposition". Our moronic and biased media took the bait and blamed Republicans.

Anonymous said...

Lucy, Bob's personally accused Bill Reilich of sabotaging Mike Green on his live radio program, continued to blame Republicans on another, bought hook line and sinker Chuck Schumer's lie that it was the GOP, refused to state the actual reasons that we already know about, pens a piece on his website, continues to openly support Green despite his own fasle accusations and lies and because he buries a one sentence statement in his comments sections, we're all supposed to believe he is now espousing the truth?

Sorry, when Lonsberry publicly apologizes to Reilich, calls out Schumer and his staff for lying to him and demands that Mike Green come clean on what he told the FBI that they found to have been a lie, THEN AND ONLY THEN, will I (and should the people of Rochester) give credibility back to Lonsberry and the rest of our local media.

I'm sick of the overtly cozy (and borderline corrupt) relationship between our local press and the Democrat bosses in this community.

Anonymous said...

Lonsberry and the D&C have been totally irresponsible in their coverage on this. You expect it out of the D&C since they'll never speak the truth about Democrats doing bad stuff. Lonsberry is another story. For the past year or so he's just become outright weird about his hatred of all things Republican, and he's got these man-crushes on Duffy and Green that are sort of creepy. That's too bad, because Rochester needs someone who calls it straight.

Speedmaster said...

Here's what amuses me about this. Green was in a political position (county DA), then jockeyed to get a politically appointed position. When it doesn't work out, he is irked and complains that it was "politics" that cost him the job. It's been politics since day one! It was politics that GOT him the appointment in the first place! And his career is politics!

Anonymous said...

Agreed 12:34. Bob Lonsberry is a RINO who pretends to be Conservative by simply calling Obama a commie, pinky lib. Big deal. When in truth, he uses his position to benefit Democrat candidates and elected officials. He loves Democrat Bob Duffy, Democrat Mike Green, LOVED Democrat Eric Massa (ick), and takes nasty swipes at local Republicans every single chance he gets. Why? Because Democrats like Chuck Schumer TELL him to and he obeys and does their dirty work for them. What a good little Democrat boy Bob is.

He's a self-proclaimed Republican who attacks the GOP using "hey, you gotta believe me because I'm a Republican" angle.

Curt Smith at WXXI does the exact same thing. They're Democrats in GOP clothing who do it to try to improve ratings.

It's nothing more than business for these guys. They have no Conservative beliefs or morals.

I'd love for either of them to post here and prove me wrong.