The president makes an excellent choice

You probably did a double-take with that header, because there’s not much in print linking the word ‘president’ with ‘excellent’ these days, which is at least as reflective of the media as it is of Mr. Bush. But he made a top-notch selection this week of Harvard Law Professor Mary Ann Glendon to be the new ambassador to the Vatican. I found this in the inbox almost immediately afterward, and the news is spreading fast.

Glendon’s gifts, talents and intellect are considerable. That Harvard piece covers them in brief:

A prominent legal scholar of comparative constitutional law and international human rights, Glendon is known as a staunch defender of Catholic doctrine, while also working to expand the inclusion of women in the church.

Glendon has held top posts in the Vatican since 1994, when she was appointed to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences by Pope John Paul II to promote the study of the social sciences. In 2004, Glendon was named as president of the Academy. She also headed the 22-member delegation of the Holy See to the international 1995 Beijing Conference on Women sponsored by the United Nations.

In addition to her work with the Vatican, Glendon was a member of President Bush’s Council on Bioethics, which advises the president on ethical issues related to advances in bioethics. She was a recipient of the 2005 National Humanities Medal which she received for her contributions to the humanities. 

Glendon is the author of several books and articles, including her casebook entitled “Comparative Legal Traditions” and the critically acclaimed book “A World Made New: Eleanor Roosevelt and the Universal Declaration of Human rights.” A member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, she is a past president of the UNESCO-sponsored International Association of Legal Science.

But those major professional and personal achievements don’t stay the lashing hand of the pro-abortion movement, for whom there is but one qualification for anything: adherence to their beliefs.

Diogenes noticed how the reporting was shaping up with all the buzzwords.

An “anti-abortion scholar.” Got the picture, you Boston Globe subscribers? Re-read it again slowly until you’re convinced she’s a threat to human liberty at home and abroad. Right then. Note also that she’s an opponent of gay marriage. In the article’s last sentence but one we’re told, offhandedly, that Glendon “teaches in the areas of” human rights, comparative law, constitutional law, and legal theory — but who cares about her hobbies?

This nomination presents the Senate an exquisite opportunity in this presidential campaign season. It couldn’t have come at a better time.