I’ve been going over roll calls for confirmations and certain bills. We truly can’t hold the Dems accountable for the confirmations of Roberts, Alito or Gonzales. Roberts was a close one, with 22 Dems voting to confirm, but even if the 22 had voted against confirmation, he would have been confirmed. Gonzales only got 6 Democrats to vote for him. 3 Dems didn’t vote. Alito had only 4 Democrats vote for him.

But now, we can hold you accountable. 1/2 the Senate needs to vote in favor to confirm. You hold half the Senate. You better be there and you better vote NAY on this one!!! Oh, and next time they are up for re-election, we can hold to account the Democrats that did vote yes to give us the rightwing Supreme Court we now have, and will be stuck with for years to come. You can find the vote roll calls here.

Hans von Spakovsky is among the GOP hacks who perverted the U.S. Department of Justice - trashing constitutional principles, rewarding partisanship over competence and converting the entire machinery into an arm of the Republican Party. His specialty was suppressing voting by Americans of color, who are more likely to support Democrats; he played a starring role in a nationwide effort to disenfranchise poor blacks, Latinos and Native Americans.

Now, Mr. von Spakovsky is seeking Senate approval for a six-year term on the Federal Election Commission, which enforces federal campaign finance laws. (President Bush gave Mr. von Spakovsky a recess appointment in January 2006, but he must have Senate confirmation for a full term.) The vote ought to be easy: No, no and no way.

A group of former Justice Department professionals - including a former chief of the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section - have stepped forward to oppose his nomination. According to The Washington Post, more than half the career lawyers in the Voting Section left in protest during his tenure.

Mr. von Spakovsky’s blatant disregard for the constitutionally guaranteed right to the franchise should disqualify him from even serving as a volunteer poll worker, much less a commissioner on the FEC. He is a leading light among the Republican activists who have whipped up the bogeyman of fraudulent voting, claiming that illegal ballots can only be stopped by stringent requirements, such as state’sponsored photo IDs, at the ballot box.

Actually, illegal voters are about as common as honest Bush appointees in the Justice Department.

More at the Baltimore Sun