Supreme Court Discussion leads to Charges of "Democratic Obstructionism"

Virtually every organ of the Democratic Party has already spoken out against what it expects President Bush to do to the Supreme Court: turn it into a forum of right wing ideology for decades to come. Leading Democrat Ted Kennedy released a statement that sparked protest from conservative pundits when he said that "(senate democrats) intend to oppose any candidate" that does not champion the rights of the mainstream America. Right Wing Activists such as Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity can be expected to bark back with the standard "anti-kennedy" rhetoric. Anybody in the tri-state area can probably hear this general discussion by tuning into WABC 770, AM from about 12 pm-9pm.
However, conservatives besides those in the entertainment industry can also be expected to take advantage of the political opportunities that open when Democrats threaten to block Supreme Court nominees that are "out of the mainstream". Senator John Warner (R-VA) has already warned that the "nuclear option is on the table", in anticipation of a Democratic filibuster during the confirmation.
Although neither party has done especially well in the polls lately, the nomination process is likely to favor the GOP. Since there was a deal struck between both parties during the last judicial crises, if the Democrats filibuster a Supreme Court confirmation-despite the obviously grave importance of selecting an appropriate judge for the position-, they will seem to have broken their promise. This will seem especially obvious if the president decides to nominate one of the judges who was accepted in the previous deal, such as Janice Rogers Brown or Pricilla Owen. Since they were not considered extraordinary circumstances in the deal, it will be hard for the Democrats to label them so in the Supreme Court battle.