I believe it's over

So does Byron York and the sources he's citing:

The strategists discuss issues on a twice-weekly conference call led by Leonard Leo, the executive vice president of the Federalist Society who has taken leave to help the White House shepherd the nomination through the Senate. A number of people who have taken part in the calls described the conversations to National Review Online. None wanted to be identified, because they do not want to openly oppose the White House or defy loyalists like Leo who are trying hard to defend Miers. Nevertheless, they paint a grim portrait of morale among those close to the nomination.

"The number of participants is declining," says one knowledgeable source. "With Roberts, these calls occurred five or six or seven times a week. Pretty early on, the calls on Miers were scaled back to twice a week. That says something in and of itself."

"It's been a gradual descent into almost silence," says a second source of the calls. "The meetings with the senators are going terribly. On a scale of one to 100, they are in negative territory. The thought now is that they have to end....Obviously the smart thing to do would be to withdraw the nomination and have a do-over as soon as possible. But the White House is so irrational that who knows? As of this morning, there is a sort of pig-headed resolve to press forward, cancel the meetings with senators if necessary, and bone up for the hearings."

"They are going to be keeping the meetings that they've already scheduled," says a third source. "But they have scheduled murder boards today from 12 to 5. She has to focus on her hearing. And the questionnaire that wasn't filled out, to me that's an indication [the White House] hasn't done the vetting. She has to spend a lot of time discussing stuff that should have been done before. So between those two things — finishing the questionnaire and preparing for the hearing, which is going to be make or break — they prefer to put her time into that."

Michelle is all but blowing taps:

I have stayed away from the depressing and divisive subject of Harriet Miers for a few days. It was a healthy little respite. But things have taken yet another grim, embarrassing turn--and it is becoming increasingly difficult to imagine that this nomination will make it to the scheduled Nov. 7 Senate hearing date.

First, if you haven't already read it, check out Miers' 57-page questionnaire (in PDF via NRO), which she submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The blogosphere has brutally dissected Miers' answers, non-answers, and unintelligible gibberish. See, for example, Steve Bainbridge, Prawfsblawg, Victor Fleischer, James Lindgren, Patterico, and Bench Memos.

Now, Sens. Arlen Specter and Pat Leahy have rendered their verdict: They want a do-over. Words like "underwhelming," "inadequate," and "insulting" are streaming out of Washington. And it's not just from the lips and keyboards of elitist/sexist pundits.

Her hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee are scheduled to begin November 7th but I don't think it to be a stretch to predict a withdrawal probably before month's end.

Given what this nomination has done to split conservatives, I'm of a mind to think that the earlier she withdraws the better.  Let's chalk this up to a mistake, handle it in a way that avoids her being butchered (although it may be too late for that) and move on.

Oh... and Karl Rove better be more involved in finding her replacement.

UPDATE: Captain Ed offers insights as to how the President might just be able to save face:

CQ reader Tom Holsinger notes a key development in the Harriet Miers nomination to the Supreme Court, one that probably will signal a merciful end to the conservative split over the controversial selection. Two key Republican Senators, the conservative Sam Brownback and the more moderate Lindsay Graham, have "requested" privileged material from Miers' work with George Bush for their review as a condition of their desired support of Miers' confirmation -- a request that amounts to a polite triple-dog dare...

Read it all.

MORE: For N.Z.Bear and his tracking page, I oppose the Miers nomination on the grounds that it has, rightly or wrongly, hurt conservatives more than it has helped and I reiterate what I wrote earlier, I hope Karl Rove is involved in choosing her replacement.

Comments

[Zossima]

This pick appears to have been Bush rewarding a loyalist. But she is unqualified. Period. Honestly, she comes across as just plain stupid, which she of course is not. It's a shame. She doesn't deserve the humiliation she's getting. But she should have had the humility to refuse the nomination. I've been enjoying Ann Coulter's skewering of the nomination.

You're right: From a pure strategy standpoint, Rove needs to be involved in the next pick. As I've said before, the best Rove could do right now, given declining polls, is to send up a highly qualified candidate who will clearly oppose Roe. Force the Democrats hand on this. Force them to filibuster. That will remind people of the inherent weakness of the Dems.