Journalist Nat Hentoff recently passed away. He wrote a number of columns about the confirmation battles over Judge Charles Pickering including: The Senate: Advise and disgrace and The other Pickering story and A Judge's Life: The Final Reckoning and Mike Wallace, the Redeemer.

Here is an excerpt at a look at working with Hentoff on his Pickering coverage in memory of his passing: Speech and all that jazz

Hentoff had taken a special interest in Judge Pickering’s confirmation and wrote a number of columns on the matter appearing in the Village Voice, the Washington Times, the Jewish World Review and others. The atheist Jew from Boston lambasted the left for their treatment of the Southern Baptist judge from Jones County. Hentoff wrote, “in some 50 years as a reporter, I have seldom seen such reckless, unfair, and repeated attacks on a person—not only by Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee but also by organizations that gather financial contributions because of their proclaimed dedication to civil rights, civil liberties, and honest research.” He called the left’s efforts a “character assassination” and refuted point by point their criticisms of Pickering. Following the broadcast of a 60 Minutes piece by Mike Wallace who – like Hentoff – found Pickering the opposite of the left’s criticisms, Hentoff called Wallace and thanked him. He told Wallace, “You gave the man his reputation back.” Then Hentoff wrote another column recounting the Wallace piece and castigating New York Senator Chuck Schumer, whom he called “the Democrats’ hitman on Pickering.” “Paraphrasing what a defense attorney said to Joe McCarthy in the Army-McCarthy hearings on alleged communists in our land,” Hentoff wrote, “At long last, Sen. Schumer, have you no sense of decency?”

Southwick book an exhibit for confirmation reform

From "Southwick's judicial journey" by Brian Perry

Attorneys interested in the machinations of how federal judges are selected, nominated, confirmed and appointed will find an insightful look behind the scenes in "The Nominee: A Political and Spiritual Journey," the new book by U.S. Fifth Circuit Judge Leslie H. Southwick published by University Press of Mississippi. But the memoir goes beyond legal intrigue and provides and entertaining and exhaustive study of the politics of judicial confirmation for all those interested in the past and future of the judiciary. (Legal or political history nerds will also find helpful his appendix reviewing the background of selection for all Fifth Circuit judges from 1869 to 2012.) Southwick provides an honest account of his struggle to reach the court of appeals bench: ambition checked by humility; calculated moves tempered by seeking God's will; partisan conflict in which he becomes a pawn for a battle not his own but holding his future career in the balance. In 2006, Southwick was nominated for a federal district judge position but that nomination expired without action by the Senate. In 2007, after the U.S. Senate had blocked the nominations of first Judge Charles Pickering, Sr. and later attorney Michael Wallace, Southwick was chosen and his real battle against liberal special interest groups began. Through meetings with Democratic Senators explaining his court opinions, efforts by Cochran and Senator Trent Lott in persuading their colleagues, and the White House rejecting "deals" as it had rejected with Pickering's nomination, ultimately Southwick was confirmed overcoming a filibuster by three votes and then confirmed with a 59 vote majority. The book is not only a political memoir, but a story of a man following his faith and acknowledging his own failures. It is also another testament to the broken judicial confirmation process. I find similar emotions and observations from Southwick and many others who have commented on the judicial selection process. An honorable man is frustrated when his character is assaulted. There is a desire for people to know the truth. A nominee and his family face anguish over months and years as the process drags on at "glacial" speed with their lives and careers in limbo. Those observations are not only from Republican nominees, but also from Democrats. The judicial confirmation process fails nominees and needs reform. Pickering suggested a number of reforms in his books and Southwick's book is an exhibit for the pressing need to provide a reliable and fair (to both parties) mechanism to confirm or reject nominees.

Barbour cites Waller, Pickering as early signs of racial changes in Mississippi

From an opinion piece in today's USA Today, former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour writes about how the South and Mississippi has changed regarding race relations, and notes the changes have been coming for a long time.

Mississippi today has more African-American elected officials than any other state, 1,075. The percentage of African Americans in our state registered to vote compared with the black voting-age population is 90.2%, compared with 62.1% in New York, and turnout among African Americans has exceeded that of whites in recent elections.

While these achievements occurred at a somewhat evolutionary pace, it is unrecognized that many white Southerners accepted them rather quickly.

After Medgar Evers was murdered 50 years ago, his killer, Byron De La Beckwith, was prosecuted by a young district attorney from Jackson, Bill Waller. When the first jury failed to reach a verdict, Waller tried Beckwith again. The second jury hung as well, and Beckwith was not convicted until the early 1990s.

Conventional wisdom held that Waller would be politically ostracized. Instead, Bill Waller was elected governor in 1971. His son, Bill Waller Jr., is currently chief justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court.

During the same period, Laurel, Miss., prosecutor Charles Pickering testified in the 1966 criminal trial against Sam Bowers, the leader of the Ku Klux Klan in the state. Pickering was soon elected to the state Senate, became Mississippi Republican Party chairman and served as a federal judge.

If Mississippi had not already begun to change those 40 years ago, these elections would not have resulted as they did. While evolutionary overall, political changes began in my state much sooner than is often recognized, and positive changes in other areas of race relations have continued apace.

Pickeirng speaks to Forrest-Lamar Republican Women

Retired Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Charles Pickering spoke to the Forrest-Lamar Republican Women about the Constitution. WDAM reports:

He spoke about the history of the Constitution and its importance in our everyday lives. He also shared his concerns over some studies that show students aren't learning what they need to know about the Constitution and U.S. history. "The Roper organization did a study and found that the seniors from our 55 elite colleges and universities, so-called elite colleges and universities, that those seniors either made a D or an F about the history of our nation," Pickering said. "Thomas Jefferson said that if we expect to be ignorant and free, we expect what never has been and never will be. Our people show an alarming lack of knowledge about our past and that is a dangerous signal," he said.

Constitution once amended frequently

Writing about the recent official notification of the ratification of the 13th Amendment by Mississippi, this column quotes from A Price Too High to note that once the Constitution was frequently amended.

Today we no longer seek actual war to determine the great issues that divide us as a country. In fact, we no longer seek actual amendments to the Constitution. Thirteen states on the left or the right can block any amendment. In "A Price Too High: The Judiciary in Jeopardy," former U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Justice Charles Pickering of Laurel, Mississippi wrote, "The Constitution is not too sacred to amend, for the Founders created a process to do so. From the time the Constitution was adopted in 1788 until 1971, the Constitution was amended twenty-six times...The twenty-six amendments adopted between 1789 and 1971, constitute an average of one amendment every seven years. From 1933 until 1971, we amended the Constitution seven times, an average of one amendment every five years. No amendment proposed since 1971-during the thirty-five years since the living mystery Constitution became a prevailing legal theory-has been adopted."

Pickering speaks at law enforcement memorial & Boy's State

Retired Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Charles Pickering spoke recently at a ceremony honoring fallen Forrest County, Mississipp law enforcement officers.

"We have men and women who are willing to dedicate themselves as law enforcement officers. So, to pay tribute to those who have given their lives so that we might enjoy the American dream is entirely appropriate."

And today, he addressed delegates to Mississippi's American Legion Boy's State about racial reconciliation and social-cultural issues.

Remembering Mike Wallace

Veteran broadcast journalist Mike Wallace played an important role during the fight for the confirmation of Judge Charles W. Pickering, Sr. to the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. His interview and segment on 60 Minutes changed a lot of minds and in the words of one journalist, gave Pickering his reputation back.

Pickering recounted the interview and the aftermath in a full chapter in "A Price Too High."

As many mourn the passing of Wallace, here are a few words Pickering used to describe the dean of television interviewers:

Mike Wallace pours color and energy into the room: simultaneously salty and respectful, boisterous and demur, rowdy and relaxed, cosmopolitan and earthy, questioning and knowing - the twinkle in his eyes says there is a wonderful joke in the world all around us, and he is about to deliver the punch line.

Here is a column on the Wallace interview of and segment on Pickering and you can view some pictures of the interview here.

50th Anniversary of the Freedom Riders

On this the 50th Anniversary of the Freedom Rides into Mississippi, Governor Haley Barbour apologized to those civil rights champions for their treatment and thanked them for helping to make a difference for Mississippi.



He also thanked those who asked him to be a part of this: Former Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Reuben Anderson, Retired U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Justice Charles Pickering, former Ambassador John Palmer, Congressman Bennie Thompson, Jackson businessman Leroy Walker and Atlanta businessman and Freedom Rider Hank Thomas.

Carroll Justice Gartin Building

Retired U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Charles W. Pickering Sr. will be offering thoughts and memories of his former law partner and former Mississippi Lieutenant Governor Carroll Gartin today at the dedication of the new building to house the Mississippi Supreme Court, Mississippi Court of Appeals, and supporting clerks and legal staff. The Carroll Gartin Justice Building will be dedicated at 10:30am (cst) and can be viewed online at the Mississippi Supreme Court's web site.

Justice Antonin Scalia will keynote the event which will also feature Mississippi Chief Justice Bill Waller, Jr.; Governor Haley Barbour; Chief Judge of the Mississippi Court of Appeals L. Joseph Lee; U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Justice James Graves; and others.

The Mississippi Business Journal has a video of clips from the event featuring Waller, Pickering, and Barbour and many who attended: Gartin Justice Building Dedication

Sid Salter writes that Graves faces same "Beltway shuffle" as Pickering

Sid Salter writes about how the stalling on Justice James Graves reminds him of Charles Pickering's confirmation challenges.

The Senate Judiciary Committee has moved rather slowly on the Obama judicial appointments. Democrats have accused Senate Republicans of “obstructionism” over delays in the confirmation of Graves and other appointees.

It is unfortunate that Graves is being used as a political pawn in this process. But he is neither the first nor the last nominee likely to be caught in the “Beltway shuffle.”

Republicans are quick to point to similar treatment of former President George W. Bush’s nominees who got the stall treatment by Democrats. Mississippians Charles Pickering was famously victimized, as was Appeals Court Judge Leslie Southwick, who faced unfair opposition and partisan attacks, but finally was confirmed.

At least Graves does appear to be headed for a committee vote and confirmation. Pickering has to settle for a temporary recess appointment from Bush.

As it was with Pickering, there is no substantive debate either here in Mississippi or on Capitol Hill that Graves isn’t well qualified for the job. What is at issue for Graves — as it was for Pickering — is the perception of his politics.

Pickering was believed by Senate Democrats to be too conservative and that his political philosophies and religious faith might put him at odds with liberal Democrats on key issues. Graves is believed by Senate Republicans to be too liberal and that his political philosophies might put him at odds with conservative Republicans on key issues.

Hence, the “Beltway shuffle” and the tactics of delay and denial.

Graves deserves to be confirmed. Republican delays and denials of Graves’ nomination will do nothing to help conservative judges who were victimized during their own confirmation battles.

But particularly galling are complaints from Democratic Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., that Graves is a victim of Republican obstructionism. Few members of Congress practice that type of judicial obstructionism more often than has Sen. Leahy and more often than not against Mississippi judicial nominees.

You can read Salter's full column here: Judge Graves, like Pickering, caught in the "Beltway shuffle"

Sowell: Race Card Fraud against Tea Party

Thomas Sowell writes about the attacks on the Tea Party movement and illustrates it with the attacks on Judge Charles Pickering's confirmation.

Credit card fraud is a serious problem. But race card fraud is an even bigger problem.

Playing the race card takes many forms. Judge Charles Pickering, a federal judge in Mississippi who defended the civil rights of blacks for years and defied the Ku Klux Klan back when that was dangerous, was depicted as a racist when he was nominated for a federal appellate judgeship.

No one even mistakenly thought he was a racist. The point was simply to discredit him for political reasons-- and it worked.

This year's target is the tea party movement.

You can read Sowell's full column here: Race Card Fraud

Charles Pickering speaks to Jones County Republican Women

Former 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Charles Pickering recently spoke to the Jones County Republican Women’s monthly meeting. The Laurel Leader Call reports: Pickering gives ‘State of the Party’ address

“It’s hard to believe it was five years ago that the Senate through a Democratic filibuster forced me to retire over the issue of abortion,” said Pickering, who noted he hadn’t spoken to the group in 20 years.

“For 14 years, I could not participate in politics,” he said. “But, for years before that, as a member of the Mississippi State Senate and chairman of the State Republican Party, I was frequently in front of the Jones County Republican Women.”

Pickering noted that the Republican Party has taken great strides since he entered state politics in the 1970s.

“They accused the Republican Party in Jones County of being a country club party and said we could meet in a phone booth,” he said. “There were two Republican senators out of 52 in the state. We’ve made tremendous progress since 1970. All but one state office is held by a Republican, but we haven’t done that well on the local level.”

Pickering also discussed a pending lawsuit in California regarding same sex marriage.

TEA Party II - Spirit of 1776 in Laurel, Miss

Charles Pickering spoke at the TEA Party II - Spirit of 1776 event at the Jones County Courthouse in Laurel, Mississippi yesterday. Here are some excerpts from the Laurel Leader Call:

Sponsored by We Surround Them - Jones County, T.E.A. Party II attracted a large number of citizens from Laurel and the surrounding area fed up with the current state of the nation. T.E.A. stands for Taxed Enough Already, a core of the 9-12 Project and its Laurel-based affiliate.

That message was further elaborated on by guest speaker Charles W. Pickering Sr., a former federal judge for the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Pickering said the U.S. has shown the “Spirit of 1776” in several areas, such as coming to the aid of other countries and breaking race and gender barriers. However, in other areas the country “has strayed from our moorings and heritage,” he said.

“Judges are now making laws, deciding democracy is too slow and people are not significantly enlightened,” Pickering said. “The Congress and the President are also passing an enormous tax burden on to our unborn children and grandchildren. That is taxation without representation.”

Pickering noted that spending is out of control with the national debt likely to double within 10 years at the current rate. That equates to a further devalued dollar and increased difficulty for young couples purchasing homes, automobiles, etc.

Pickering said the culture war has further polarized America on issues such as abortion, God in the public arena, pornography and marriage. But, he added that there is still hope.

“We can’t solve problems by playing the blame game, using stronger language or a louder voice,” he said. “We must use logic and reason of ideas. We must have politicians who set aside personal interests and partisan gains. It’s not a race and not easy or quick. We have to be in for the long haul if we want to make a difference.”

Pickering concluded by referencing a famous quote from a speech Winston Churchill delivered to a group of students in 1941. “When it comes to reinstilling the ‘Spirit of 1776,’ never, never, never give up.”

Other supporters praised Pickering, who knows firsthand about dealing with partisan politics. “I appreciate Judge Pickering so much not only for what he’s done in Mississippi but for our country,” said James Nichols, a member of We Surround Them - Jones County.

The 9-12 Project is a non-partisan political group that advocates “a return to principles and values in our government and which encourages citizen involvement to let Congressmen know the individual preferences of the voters.” The group has espoused nine principles and 12 values to spread its message.

Pickering to Speak to Laurel Tea Party 6/30

Judge Charles Pickering will be the keynote speaker at "Tea Party II: Spirit of 1176" on June 30 at 6pm at the Jones County Courthouse in Laurel, Mississippi. The Hattiesburg American reports:

The event is sponsored by the 912 Project of Jones County, a non-partisan political group that advocates a return to principles and values in government. It is open to the public.

Pickering has served as Laurel city prosecutor, a state senator, president of the Mississippi Southern Baptist Convention and a federal judge.

He authored "Supreme Chaos: The Politics of Judicial Confirmation & the Culture War" and "A Price Too High: The Judiciary in Jeopardy."

For more information on the event: 912 Project Hattiesburg

Jacoby on Race in Judicial Confirmations

In today's Boston Globe, Jeff Jacoby points out the dangers in accusing someone of racial insensitivity pertaining to the Sotomayor nomination, and uses Justice Clarence Thomas and Judge Charles Pickering as examples.

The same malice would be visited subsequently on other conservative judges nominated by Republican presidents. In 1991, Clarence Thomas was slimed as a traitor to his race for having married a white woman, and as a mouthpiece for white supremacists. "If you gave Clarence Thomas a little flour on his face," declared Carl Rowan, "you'd think you had David Duke talking." Judge Charles Pickering, a longtime advocate of racial reconciliation, was defamed by Senator John Kerry in 2002 as a "forceful advocate for a cross-burner" and by Senator Charles Schumer for his "glaring racial insensitivity."

Pickering on Radio

Judge Charles Pickering will be appear on "On Deadline with Sid Salter" today on Supertalk Mississippi to discuss the Sotomayor nomination. Salter's show is 4-6pm central and you can listen at www.supertalk.fm online.

Alito, Estrada, Pickering & Sotomayor

This week I wrote about Judge Sonia Sotomayor's nomination and hope Republicans use it as an opportunity to make two contrasts: 1) of judicial philosophies 2) of confirmation processes. Regardless of whether the Republicans will vote against her and whether they could stop her confirmation, they should exaimine her and vote accordingly, but do so in a manner that shows dignity and civility, unlike how Democrats treated Judge Charles Pickering. The spiral of disrespect must stop somewhere, Republicans should have it stop with them. Here is an excerpt from the column:

If Sotomayor believes a justice should drop the scales and pick up the legislative pen and make policy, then Republicans and Democrats alike should oppose her encroachment across the separation of powers and her disregard for the rule of law.

I doubt any Democrats will do so, and I hope Republicans will do so properly.

I would be embarrassed if during her questioning, Republicans dragged Sotomayor through the dirt and treated her like Democrats treated Samuel Alito, whom President George W. Bush nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court. Following Senator Ted Kennedy's (D-Mass) interrogation and accusations against him, Alito's wife had to leave the room in tears.

I would be agitated if Republicans mounted a process fight, attempting to bottle her in committee or filibuster her on the Senate floor like the Democrats did to Miguel Estrada, whom Bush nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. The Constitution gives the President the power by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate to appoint federal judges. As a nominee, she should have a hearing and she should have a vote. If Republicans want time to debate, they should exercise those prerogatives, but not abuse them to obstruct her nomination.

I would be frustrated if Republican Senators accused her of racism, like Democratic Senators did to Charles Pickering, whom Bush appointed to the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Some Democrats were "kinder" just saying that Pickering was "racially insensitive." Certainly had Pickering said a white man could usually make a better decision than a Latina woman, he would have been castigated by vitriolic Democrats. I hope Republicans show more class.

Republicans should treat Sotomayor with dignity in the committee, give her an up-or-down vote on the Senate floor, and refrain from character assassinations. If they do conclude she will not rule according to the word and intent of the Constitution, they should vote against her.

Republicans may not be able to prevent Sotomayor's confirmation, but they can demonstrate in the process a more respectful and responsible way of conducting the Senate than their Democratic colleagues.

Charen on Sotomayor and Pickering

Mona Charen looks at the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor and reminds us of the nomination of Charles Pickering: "It's Not Fair Casually to Call People Racist".

The nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court has already achieved a boon for our political culture: It has helped leading liberals and Democrats to discover that being tarred as a racist on flimsy grounds is unfair and deeply unpleasant. Sen. Diane Feinstein (D., Calif.) for example, when asked on Face the Nation to respond to Rush Limbaugh’s and Newt Gingrich’s comments about Sotomayor, said, “That’s an absolutely terrible thing to throw around. Based on that statement — that one word ‘better than’ [sic] — to call someone a racist is just terrible and I would hope that Republicans would not do this.”

Senator Feinstein was right as far she went. She avoided one undeniable fact, though. If a white-male nominee had been discovered to have said something similar — that he was better situated to judge due to his background and life experiences than a Latina woman was — he would be cashiered so fast as to induce whiplash. Those are the unwritten rules that Limbaugh and Gingrich are attempting, one suspects, to expose for their one-sidedness. Nevertheless, the instant labeling of the woman, based on one unwise remark, is hardly fair. If Democrats are learning this now, that’s excellent news. One hopes they will remember this discovery when the wheel turns and a Republican nominee is before the Senate. Certainly they didn’t seem to get it as recently as 2002, when President Bush nominated Judge Charles Pickering to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Then-majority leader Tom Daschle (D., S.D.) said Judge Pickering had displayed an “insensitivity to civil rights, to equal rights, especially to minorities. . . . This [nomination] lays bare the administration’s real position on civil rights.” Leading liberal newspapers tolled the bell with headlines like “Extremist Judge Unfit to Sit on Appeals Court” in the Atlanta Journal and Constitution and “Say No to This Throwback” in the Los Angeles Times.

The Democrats succeeded in torpedoing Pickering’s nomination — not to mention assassinating his character. More than “insensitive,” he was called a crypto-racist with a “segregationist past” (Paul Krugman). When President Bush offered Judge Pickering a recess appointment to avoid a Senate filibuster, Sen. John Kerry (D., Mass.) breathed fire: “Here we are, on the weekend before a national holiday when we celebrate Martin Luther King’s birthday, and George W. Bush celebrates it by appointing Charles Pickering, a known forceful advocate for a cross-burner in America, to the federal court of the United States.”

In point of fact, Judge Pickering had been a friend to civil rights throughout his career. To its credit, the New York Times actually quoted longtime associates of the judge and members of the black community in Pickering’s hometown who “overwhelmingly support his nomination . . . and admire his efforts at racial reconciliation.” The black chairman of the city council told the Times, “I can’t believe the man they’re describing in Washington is the same one I’ve known for years.” They recalled that as a young prosecutor in 1967, Pickering had endangered his career (and perhaps more) by testifying in court against the Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. He was known for hiring black staffers at a time when few white Mississippians did. Pickering encouraged the chancellor of University of Mississippi to form the Institute for Racial Reconciliation and served on its board for many years. Pickering, unlike some white southerners (and many Democrats currently serving in Congress) chose to send his children to integrated public schools.

Pickering did preside over the trial of three young men who burned a cross on the lawn of an interracial couple. Byron York’s excellent account in National Review reveals that Pickering was dismayed by the Justice Department’s decision to negotiate plea bargains with two of the defendants (including the one Pickering regarded as the ringleader) and recommend no jail time for them, while asking for seven and a half years for the remaining defendant. One of those permitted to plea to a misdemeanor by Justice was clearly a racist who had earlier shot a gun into a black man’s home, gotten into fights with black students at school, and convinced his drunk comrades to burn the cross. Pickering did not think it was just to let him off and sentence the other defendant, for whom this was a first offense, to more than seven years. He sentenced him to 27 months, admonishing the defendant that “the type of conduct you exhibited cannot and will not be tolerated. . . . I would suggest to you that during the time you’re in prison that you do some reading on race relations and maintaining good race relations and how that can be done.”

Yet, without blushing, John Kerry transmogrified Judge Pickering into “a forceful advocate for a cross burner.”

Judge Sonia Sotomayor deserves careful vetting by the Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee. She may or may not deserve their vote. But those Republicans should seize this teachable moment to remember all of the fine candidates — Pickering, Miguel Estrada, Robert Bork — and many more who were so shamefully treated by the Democrats who have suddenly discovered the evil of baseless accusations.

Happy Birthday Judge Pickering

Happy 72nd Birthday to Judge Charles Pickering today.

Pickering Hosts Scalia at William Carey

The Hattiesburg American discusses the visit of Supreme Court Antonin Scalia to William Carey University in Mississippi.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia warned against judicial activism this morning at William Carey University, saying the tendency of judges to liberally interpret the constitution on grounds other than original intent overrides the will of the people.

“There are four justices who have sat beside me who believe that the death penalty is now unconstitutional … and they believe it to be unconstitutional, because they think it ought to be,” he said.

The logical conclusion of such a stance is to take the death penalty “off the democratic stage,” he said.

Retired 5th Circuit Court Judge Charles Pickering gave the introduction, praising Scalia’s commitment to democratic principles.

“He is the most vocal advocate of the proposition that if the meaning of the Constitution is to be changed, it must be changed by the people and not by nine jurists in Washington.”