Miers Withdraws

Harriet Miers has withdrawn her nomination to the Supreme Court.

I am not ecstatic, or even happy.

I am saddened that this battle has set philosophical brothers against one another.

I am saddened that a respectable and good person, a fellow Dallas lawyer, had to go through a meat grinder.

I am saddened that the name "Harriet Miers" will for a long time be associated with cronyism and generally with individuals not thought to be up to the task at hand. I think Harriet Miers deserves better than to have that as her legacy.

I am saddened that the emphasis, on the part of those of us arrayed against her, on her human shortcomings overshadowed a career of noble and impressive service that most lawyers will never approach. As necessary as that may have been at the time, that time has now passed.

This has all been a sad and tragic spectacle, a circus of the absurd.

I'm not happy, but I am definitely relieved that this phase is over.

I'd like to think that we can come together and agree that none of that is necessary at this time, and that we can all afford to be gracious.

I call on the President to consider the pain and difficulty he has put us all though, and to exercise the utmost deliberation as he considers his next nomination.