No, it's not a column about the classic Fleetwood Mac album; it's about Hyanygo's rejected nomination to the High Court.
Little defense has been made of Hyanygo's credentials, because those of us who have been here some time felt they spoke for themselves. In short, although Hy professes not to be a "heavyweight," his judicial resume is rivaled only by Anumia's. (I learned this the hard way; back when the Chief Justice was an elected position, I ran for CJ on the heels of a successful prosecution of Rougiers -- and got my ass handed to me.) Even HEM, who has been a sometimes strident critic of Hy's jurisprudence, felt he was a strong nominee and should have been confirmed.
So, why did the Senate reject Hyanygo's nomination? Well, the three Senators who voted nay gave no reason at the time, but after a private citizen (and the President) pressed the issue, two Senators offered a response (one justifying his nay vote, the othet justifying his abstention).
Did these Senators cite concerns about Hy's jurisprudence?
No. They cited a concern raised privately to them by an as-yet-unnamed citizen. One also cited Hy's opinion on a recent matter of public concern, and his friendship with a former citizen of this region. Based on these proffered reasons, one wonders if articles of impeachment are being drafted against me.
Look, I have written at length about a creeping loyalty agenda, and I think the rejection of Hy's nomination is concrete proof of the pernicious effect such an agenda is already having on our politics. But leave that aside -- because if we take their public statements at face value, it's clear that their main concern was the reservations expressed privately to them. Hy was offered no opportunity to respond to this private smear campaign.
Whatever you may think of Hy's fitness for judicial service, he deserved a chance to respond to his critics. The President deserved a reason for the Senate's rejection of his nominee. The region deserved a debate over the rumors that the Senate evidently deemed sufficient to render one of this region's (and the game's) most esteemed jurists unfit for service.
Instead, we got rumor-mongering. For shame.
Little defense has been made of Hyanygo's credentials, because those of us who have been here some time felt they spoke for themselves. In short, although Hy professes not to be a "heavyweight," his judicial resume is rivaled only by Anumia's. (I learned this the hard way; back when the Chief Justice was an elected position, I ran for CJ on the heels of a successful prosecution of Rougiers -- and got my ass handed to me.) Even HEM, who has been a sometimes strident critic of Hy's jurisprudence, felt he was a strong nominee and should have been confirmed.
So, why did the Senate reject Hyanygo's nomination? Well, the three Senators who voted nay gave no reason at the time, but after a private citizen (and the President) pressed the issue, two Senators offered a response (one justifying his nay vote, the othet justifying his abstention).
Did these Senators cite concerns about Hy's jurisprudence?
No. They cited a concern raised privately to them by an as-yet-unnamed citizen. One also cited Hy's opinion on a recent matter of public concern, and his friendship with a former citizen of this region. Based on these proffered reasons, one wonders if articles of impeachment are being drafted against me.
Look, I have written at length about a creeping loyalty agenda, and I think the rejection of Hy's nomination is concrete proof of the pernicious effect such an agenda is already having on our politics. But leave that aside -- because if we take their public statements at face value, it's clear that their main concern was the reservations expressed privately to them. Hy was offered no opportunity to respond to this private smear campaign.
Whatever you may think of Hy's fitness for judicial service, he deserved a chance to respond to his critics. The President deserved a reason for the Senate's rejection of his nominee. The region deserved a debate over the rumors that the Senate evidently deemed sufficient to render one of this region's (and the game's) most esteemed jurists unfit for service.
Instead, we got rumor-mongering. For shame.
