A Withdrawal Timeline

From today's Hotline:

Below are the major developments over the past weeks that, bit by bit, helped derail the Miers nomination:

-- 10/3: National Review writer David Frum is one of the first to oppose the Miers nomination, calling it "an unforced error" on his blog (NRO, 10/3).

-- 10/3: Contributors to ConfirmThem.com, a 527/blog designed to drum up support for President Bush's judicial nominees largely turn against her, and it soon becomes a clearinghouse of mostly anti-Miers sentiment.

-- 10/3: Rush Limbaugh sharply questions VP Dick Cheney on his show about Miers, and expresses skepticism towards the nomination. Conservative talker Laura Ingraham also opposes her nomination, and Sean Hannity is notably lukewarm about Miers.

-- 10/5: Columnist George Will, writes piece titled "Can This Nomination Be Justified?" In it he argues "it is not important that she be confirmed" and "it might be very important that she not be."

-- 10/11: Miers tells Bush in a '97 birthday card that he was "the best governor ever -- deserving of great respect!" In another personal note to Bush, "she hoped" that Jenna and Barbara "recognize their parents are cool" and that Texas "was blessed" with him as governor.

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-- 10/13: '90 transcript suggests that Miers was uncomfortable with the Federalist Society but not with the NAACP

-- 10/17: Miers confuses Specter, suggesting she supports Griswold; issues statement later saying Specter misunderstood her

-- 10/17: Wall Street Journal's John Fund reports on a conference call with social conservatives where two colleagues of Miers said they believed she would vote to overturn Roe v. Wade

-- 10/19: In '89 Miers endorsed a constitutional amendment banning abortion during her run for Dallas City Council. This prompts previously neutral liberal interest groups to forcefully speak out against her confirmation.

-- 10/21: Columnist Charles Krauthammer calls for the Bush admin. to find "a way out" over "irreconcilable differences over documents" -- which is the primary reason the WH cited in her withdrawal.

-- 10/24: Miers apparently further "aggravates" Specter after she claims he misunderstood her over the Griswold decision in a meeting. A source close to Specter said he "is now very, very, very unhappy" (TIME, 10/24).

-- 10/24: Two websites by groups of anti-Miers conservatives, BetterJustice.org and WithdrawMiers.org are launched. BetterJustice.org runs an anti-Miers advertisement on FNC and conservative talk shows.

-- 10/26: Two '93 speeches by Miers endorsing self-determination as a principle in matters such as abortion were released, upsetting conservatives

-- 10/26: Concerned Women for America officially oppposes Miers' confirmation.

-- 10/26: Federalist Society VP Leonard Leo "suddenly quit" his lobbying effort for Miers to return to "his full-time job." Several Fed. Society members who know Leo said he is "only backing" Miers out of "loyalty to the Bush administration rather than support on the merits" (Washington Times, 10/27).