ROBERTS' SMOOTH SAILING: With NARAL's ad campaign backfiring against the hard left, and with as many as 70 senators poised to support the Roberts nomination, the activists who hoped to Bork him are scaling back their campaign. Why waste their ammo on a sure winner — better to save their resources to defeat Bush's candidate to replace Rehnquist. Their revised strategy is not without risks. If they give conservative Roberts a pass, on what basis will they oppose a second conservative nominee?

The Democrats' decision to hold their fire -- less a formal strategy than an emerging consensus -- has allowed conservatives to husband their resources for future battles. Progress for America, a political group working closely with the White House, had planned to spend $18 million to promote the confirmation of Roberts but now may spend less than half that, according to Republican aides. Democrats said that instead of mounting a headlong assault on Roberts, they plan to use the hearings and the surrounding attention by the news media to remind voters of their party's values, including the protection of rights for individual Americans. The plan calls for emphasizing rights beyond abortion in an effort to appeal to a broader swath of the electorate.

Ah yes: Democrats as champions of "rights for individuals." This from a party that has spent the past two decades organizing Americans into political grievance groups based on race, ethnicity, and gender. If they're serious about their new-found passion for individualism, the Democrats could get busy supporting federal legislation to protect private property owners in the wake of the notorious Kelo ruling (which of course enjoyed the support of Supreme Court liberals and was opposed by conservatives). House Democrats would first have to get their leader on board:

When Nancy Pelosi declares that the rulings of the Supreme Court are inviolable and tantamount to “the voice of God,” as she did recently in the Kelo eminent domain case, she is unconsciously echoing the pro-slavery and segregationist arguments of her Democratic forbears.