Harold Koh Confirmed After Long GOP Delay

Foreign Policy:

Yale Law School Dean Harold Koh was confirmed as the State Department Legal Advisor in a roll call vote, 62-35.

Koh was tapped for the job nearly four months ago, but has faced criticism from some conservatives for an alleged "transnational" approach to the law. But ranking Senate Foreign Relations Committee Republican Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) threw his support to Koh, in a statement Thursday: "After reading his answers to dozens of questions, attending his hearing in its entirety, meeting with him privately, and reviewing his writings, I believe that Dean Koh is unquestionably qualified to assume the post for which he is nominated."

Read the whole story: Foreign Policy

Comments

[mamacat]

04:57 AM on 06/26/2009

I get the feeling that The Party of No would love him, if only he were another yes-man for Bush and Cheney.

[dancucich]

03:25 AM on 06/26/2009

I hope their worst nightmares about him come to pass

[Zen0469]

12:30 AM on 06/26/2009

Good to hear that Congress got something right. Good move on Kohl confirmation.

Republithugs who held up the confirmation should be hung by their thumbs.

[booboo111]

12:36 AM on 06/26/2009

You mean by their toes.

[TJCole]

12:01 AM on 06/26/2009

He should have been Obama's Supreme Court Appointee, he would have been an important check on that totalitarian lunatic Antoni Scalia...!

[booboo111]

12:37 AM on 06/26/2009

This positions him for the next nomination to the s.c.

[rzan1]

12:49 AM on 06/26/2009

I think you are right. He would have been more unacceptable to the repubs than sotomayor at this point in time. He would be a great appointee.

[TJCole]

01:40 AM on 06/26/2009

Let's hope it plays out that way, he is brilliant and also an original thinker..!

[LindaCat]

01:16 PM on 06/26/2009

Right about that - Koh is a radical internationalist

http://www.eppc.org/publications/pubID.3793/pub_detail.asp

Scalia apparently isn't

Thompson v. Oklahoma, 487 U.S. 815, 869 n.4 (1988) (plurality opinion) (Scalia, J.,
dissenting) (“[T]he views of other nations, however enlightened the Justices of this
Court may think them to be, cannot be imposed upon Americans through the Consti-
tution.”); see also Roper v. Simmons, 125 S. Ct. 1183, 1229 (2005) (5-4 decision)
(Scalia, J., dissenting) (“‘Acknowledgement’ of foreign approval has no place in the
legal opinion of this Court . . . .” ); Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558, 598 (2003)
(Scalia, J., dissenting) (“Constitutional entitlements do not spring into existence be-
cause some States choose to lessen or eliminate criminal sanctions on certain behav-
ior. Much less do they spring into existence, as the Court seems to believe, because
foreign nations decriminalize conduct.”).

Transcript of Discussion Between U.S. Supreme Court Justices
Antonin Scalia and Stephen Breyer at the American University Washington College
of Law, Constitutional Relevance of Foreign Court Decisions (Jan. 13, 2005), avail-
able at http://domino.american.edu/AU/media/mediarel.nsf (follow “AU Media Press
Releases” hyperlink, then follow hyperlink to the transcript title); see also Posting of
Peggy McGuinness to OPINIO JURIS
, Breyer v. Scalia: A “Messy Conversation” on
Foreign Law, http://lawofnations.blogspot.com/2005/01/breyer-v-scalia-messy-
conversation-on.html (Jan. 16, 2005 13:17 CST).

[Scar1]

11:44 PM on 06/25/2009

Good to hear he got the job. Nice to hear something good.

[RogerBurke]

11:12 PM on 06/25/2009

Potassium Hydroxide?
Apologize in advance, because I’m sure the guy has suffered this from wiseacre Yalies all his life, but is it possible that since his name is the symbol for potassium hydroxide, the Republicans didn’t want to be accused again of playing to a base? Or felt the Democratic questioners were just soft soaping the guy? Right, I’m going to turn myself in.

[SavonarolaGirolamo]

12:45 AM on 06/26/2009

Another Rethuglican lye. All they can do is lye! And their caustic potash, sheesh!

bravo

[rzan1]

12:51 AM on 06/26/2009

Clever and funny comment.

[LeeCalif]

10:39 PM on 06/25/2009

I wonder if Senator Lugar put dozens of questions to Bush's nominee for the same post.

I think not, the hypocrite.

[bubbuh]

10:58 PM on 06/25/2009

He read the standard interrogatories as well as those posed by all the members of the committee. Use your brain instead of your spleen

[somsoc]

11:34 PM on 06/25/2009

Sorry bubbuh, you are incorrect, but then again Lugar does occasionally think for himself, only occasionally.

[stylenease]

10:37 PM on 06/25/2009

Right on! I am all for Johnson next for SCOTUS after Sotomayor is confirmed.

[Kassandra]

10:22 PM on 06/25/2009

YAY!!!!!!! Now, for Dawn Johnson - OLC

[IWantTofu]

09:44 PM on 06/25/2009

Sometimes the Republicans must give up on principle and do what is right.

[DSOTM]

07:53 PM on 06/25/2009

Hey Rattler99

Other than saying "We were never attacked after 9/11" please tell me what went right under 8 years of Bush and the GOP leadership?

[alabaman]

07:32 PM on 06/25/2009

This is who BO should appoint for the next Supreme Court vacancy. He'll be the perfect counterpoint to Scalia.

[vegasobserver]

09:00 PM on 06/25/2009

Next Supreme Court Vacancy = ELIZABETH WARREN

[kalithiotis]

10:06 PM on 06/25/2009

Lets hope he is Scalia's replacement.

[TJCole]

01:41 AM on 06/26/2009

Sweet..!

[ObamAtomic]

06:43 PM on 06/25/2009

Decent man,Mr Lugar!
A few Republican left like you Mr Lugar!

[timewaster2dcore]

06:26 PM on 06/25/2009

Another minority obstructed by most of "white men party" members. Goes to show you how hard it is for minorities to make it in a white majority. Things like this happen when applying for a job and you happen to be 'different'. Even having all the qualifications in the world, less qualified white people get through easily. Sonia Sotomayor is another example of this fact. Despite having the most comprehensive resume in a long time for a SC nominee, she's still being undermined and made to look like a mediocre. These examples show that this country still has some work to do when it comes to non-inclusion of skin color in job qualifications.

[Lionsden]

06:48 PM on 06/25/2009

timewaster:

So you think non-whites are too stupid to decide which political philosophy (democrat or republican) they prefer?

[Grunty1]

07:13 PM on 06/25/2009

There aren't many people who make a philosophy of hating people that look like themselves.

Or do you think non-white people are willing to throw away self-respect put up with hatred directly at them personally?

[rattler99]

07:22 PM on 06/25/2009

yep, that's what timewaster (good name) is saying

[Quaoar]

10:43 PM on 06/25/2009

In truth, I think the Repubs are obstructing simply for the sake of obstructing and trying to prove to America that they are still relevant.

[BrickSykes]

11:20 PM on 06/25/2009

I think you just got it!

Brick

[TexasDem0]

06:00 PM on 06/25/2009

Is it possible that the party of NO finally got the message that the Public is tired of NO?

[GafferTapeLvr]

06:43 PM on 06/25/2009

No...

[Grunty1]

07:14 PM on 06/25/2009

Nope. With 62 aye votes, they ran out of ways to obstruct him.