BY ALL MEANS, I DARE YOU

Bush renominates Charles Pickering for a federal judgeship, he of the "shaky" civil rights record. Oh and pro-life nut Priscilla Owen as well.

Hey GOP, don't forget, I warned you. You have control of essentially the entire government, and if you push for a hard conservative agenda (including nominating "strict constructionist" judges -- more lovely code-words to go along with "states' rights"), the backlash will be considerable, possibly going all the way up to the White House in '04.

Democrats: Do what Kos said. The second he comes up for debate, label Pickering for what he is: a Trent Lott judge. Do it in front of cameras. Do it in the papers. Hell, do it on the Senate floor! I know Lott won't like it, but right now he's much more concerned with the large thick knife that he feels Rove & co. stuck in his back. His non-acknowledgement of Bill Frist the other day is rather revealing in this matter. From CNN's Inside Politics:

As he walked back, Daschle was standing next to Frist to shake everybody's hands. Senator Lott went over to Tom Daschle. They shook hands, they embraced, they shared a laugh and then Senator Lott walked right by Bill Frist without giving him so much as a handshake. It was a very chilly moment. You could actually feel the chill up in the spectator's galleries in the Senate.

(both links found at the mysterious atrios . . . um go falcons!)