Bobby Eberle, my favorite wingnut over at GOPUSA, is out with a finger-wagging, I-told-you-so column arguing that conservatives wouldn't be in such a political pickles over the Sotomayor Supreme Court pick if only they had listened to him back in 2003 and locked in their own Hispanic by fighting harder for Miguel Estrada's nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. After reviewing the history and the demographic trendline, Eberle concludes forlornly:
The Democrats knew that a conservative Hispanic in line for the Supreme Court would help bring more Hispanics to the Republican Party, and they fought it tooth and nail. Because Republicans backed down, we are now paying the price.
In Texas, in just a few decades, Hispanics will be the majority population. The same holds true for other states as well. Yet, the Republican Party just doesn't get it. The Democrats "get it." Now, we will all "get it" with a liberal judge who will not only continue the left-wing voting record of the justice she will replace, but also with a judge who will help bring more Hispanics on board. Oh... what might have been...
Hindsight, regrets, fingerpointing--it's a catnip combo among the party faithful these days. Of course, while he's at it, Eberle might also want to ponder the costs of the base's savagely rejecting President Bush's and John McCain's efforts at comprehensive immigration reform. But, hey, one regret at a time.
--Michelle Cottle