More Than Roe…

Many will tell you that nominating a new Justice for the Supreme Court is just about filling one seat, that’s all. No big deal, right? What’s the fuss?

Either they have no idea what they are talking about, they are deliberately distorting the situation, or they are lying. This is not about ‘one seat’. This the culmination of a near 50-year campaign to turn the court, to finish the politicization, (or the ‘right-ization’) begun under Reagan. Some say it started earlier, under Nixon. The court right now sits as one of the most far-right courts in history, at an ideological 5-4 split, with Chief Justice John Roberts a sometime swing vote. That is/was until the death of RBG. That now all changes with a Trump appointee.

The right has insisted on basically one test for their increasingly far-right judges, ‘will you kill Roe v Wade?’, so the center-to-left has to play that game and ask them ‘will you overturn Roe v Wade?’, and that has been the test to get on the court since the 80s. From both sides.

So, here we are. With the death of Justice Ginsberg, and before her admirers are even allowed to morn, we have the Trump and McConnell GOP rushing at full speed to shove someone, anyone as far right as they can, into that seat, NOW. No idea if McConnell will even allow the whole kabuki dance of hearings or not. I’d be somewhat surprised if he did, but I assume they’ll have to do something to sell whatever nominee they choose to a public that is now more divided than ever. Even if it means destroying the legitimacy of the Court, something they really don’t care about anyway (that took a big hit with the stealing of a seat from Obama).

But this is much more than just Roe v Wade, for Republicans and Democrats, this is about the changing demographics and the shifting society. The Republicans know that their time as a national force is limited by the fact that America is becoming less White, less Christian, over all less religious, and less rural. This is the GOP’s base, the ones they have relied on for decades, and they are becoming a minority. Instead of trying to expand that base, as their own research showed they needed to do (the famous ‘autopsy’ in 2013) they instead decided to keep people out. They turned their back on anyone not White, not Christian, and doubled down on what was left.

The GOP gave up on outreach, and instead went with fear, went with hate, and since they could not grow their base, they made sure anyone not part of it wasn’t allowed to vote, to thrive, to grow.

But to achieve this, they needed the courts.

Every year, the number of people voting for the GOP declines, it’s a fact. So you gerrymander, you put restrictions on voting; who can vote, where they can vote, how they can vote. Now, for the most part, judges don’t like these kinds of tactics, and the Voting Rights Act was often cited. In fact, the VRA was passed specifically to stop those sorts of tactics. So, you get Justices who will kill the enforcement part of the VRA, you get far-right judges appointed who will agree with your ‘these people shouldn’t vote’ philosophy, you couch it in enough legalese, or hide your true motives just enough to give cover to their rulings.

The GOP has giving up governing, given up legislating, (what great bill has McConnell passed? What grand compromise has he made?) given up caring about anything but getting massive amounts of far-right judges appointed. Compromise, and learning to work with the other side is difficult, it’s a lot of work and you probably won’t get the result you wanted, so just get the courts. They know they’ll soon not be able to win national elections (they’ve recently had two presidents who’ve served without winning the popular vote) and might be soon reduced to a regional party. But if they can appoint enough judges, that won’t matter. If they can’t get national electoral power, they’ll rule though the courts. Long after the country has changed, long after the White majority is no longer the majority, the GOP can hold power over a country that has rejected their ideals by capturing, and keeping, the courts.

More than Roe, that is what this is about.

This is why the Democrats will need to appoint more Justices. They will never be anything slightly left of center upheld by the conservative SCOTUS, never. And a conservative court will then start on killing the entire Civil Rights Era. It’s been on the GOP list for years, and they’ve been itching to do it. Anything that might smell of progress will be slapped down, if it even gets past the GOP/Trump circuit and appeals courts. 2-4 new seats will restore balance. The Democrats will also need to expand the number of Federal judges as well, (they could use it) to rebalance a system that has been purposely skewed, to ensure justice.

 And that’s what this needs to be about, justice.

None of this will be easy, but if McConnell pushes this through, it will not only be needed, it will be necessary.

What is Legal, and What is Just.

Lady Justice, blindfold in place and holding her scales high.

Friday night, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed at the age of 87. She was a legal giant, beloved by people everywhere, an icon. Hell, she’s on t-shirts, earrings and brooches! One of the greatest legal advocates for women of the 20th century until two days ago.

The reaction was immediate; tributes poured in from friends, colleagues, and admirers… and then many from the right started in calling her ‘baby killer’, celebrating her death, and calling for her immediate replacement. Within an hour of her death.

She had stated, shortly before her death that she did not to be replaced before the election, it was her dying wish. It will likely be ignored by the GOP, who has vowed to forget about the bogus ‘McConnell Rule’ they used to block a nominee under Obama, and push through a nominee at lighting speed. Thus, stealing a second Supreme Court seat. They will jam though the farthest right judge they can find, designed to dishonor and undo as much of Justice Ginsburg’s legacy as possible.

Is that legal? Yes.

Is it just?

No.

There is a difference between what’s legal, and what's just. So far, the GOP has stolen one seat by extra-legal means, and not paid any sort of price for it. Now, they propose to throw out the slim 'justification' they use to steal that seat to, basically, steal this one. This may be ‘legal’, but it is not 'just'.

If they do this, and they will, as being hypocrites is their preferred managerial style, they will tear the country apart and destroy the reputation and authority of the SCOTUS, probably forever. They should understand they are finally freeing the Democrats to ignore any objection the GOP will have when the GOP is, inevitably, back in the minority. And if polls are correct, that day may be soon. The Democrats will have to make the GOP pay for their destroying of the moral guidelines of the government, and they will have to put in place rules, with consequences, to make sure the behavior of the McConnell years does not happen again, to make sure a Trump can’t thumb his nose at the law again.

The entire country is living the nightmare many warned about during 2016. We are on a precipice right now, threatening to tip over into minority, authoritarian rule. We can work to right and then fix the nation, or we can tear the place down and wander the ruins. These are the choices; is it legal, or is it just?

It is time for justice.

The Coming Fight

My last piece ended:

And the world will burn.

And it very well might, but what do we do about it? The public expects very little integrity out of the GOP these days, (not their brand in the Age of Trump) and blatantly ignoring the bullshit rule they used to steal a senate seat under Obama will be met by their followers with nothing but excuses, and hypocritical praise. You know, the ‘own the libs!’ mantra the Trump base so dearly loves. The Democrats are the ones expected to be ‘big’ about the whole thing, and not too ‘political’, because how is anyone going to expect maturity from the Trump Party?  It’s always defaulted to clean the GOP’s messes.

Trump will name a nominee (no doubt picked weeks, if not months ago) probably tomorrow or Monday and McConnell has proclaimed he’ll jam it through come hell or high water, hell being the more likely. Lindsey Graham has gone back on his word to hold any other president to the ‘McConnell Rule’, as I figured he would, so that’s a possible ‘vote against’ gone. But really, I never counted him in the first place; he’s an iron mote attracted to the strongest magnet in the room. That magnet used to be John McCain, now it’s Donald Trump. He will always go where Trump goes.

There is still the hope of conscience and integrity (that odd, odd word again) in the rest of the GOP Senate caucus, but that’s really just a sick joke, isn’t it? I am not an expert in the Senate rules, but I bet the parliamentarians on both sides are feverishly combing through the rules at this moment looking for ways to speed up and slow down the process. The Democrat’s will throw everything they can at the process, and the GOP will ignore any rules they don’t like, like always (skipping hearings and maybe just going to the vote? Would not surprise me). What can be done?

Maybe nothing at the moment, it’s very likely Trump and McConnell will get their pick. It’s going to be ugly, but if they have the votes, the process might be slowed but doubtfully stopped. What can be done, needs to be done is fight, and tell the GOP what the consequences will be if Biden is president.

One: Biden needs to be out in front of this now. A speech pointing out the divisiveness of the GOP’s actions and their lawless behavior is needed, one that trurns Trump’s so-called ‘LAW & ORDER’ nonsense on its head. It the GOP and violent police that are the problem and the lawlessness of the GOP is stopping the root from being dealt with. Their drive for power at all costs has corrupted this country of its government and courts, and need to be stopped.

Two: If the Democrats take the Senate, probable Majority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer has said he will ‘keep the filibuster in his back pocket’ like it’s some kind of threat against the GOP. This is insanity. The GOP doesn’t care, they’ll blow it up if they get the chance. No progressive legislation will get passed if they have to court far-right votes. It changes and compromises the bills down to nothing, and still won’t get any GOP votes. Didn’t they learn anything from Obamacare? Day one. It’s gone; majority rules.

Three: Expand the courts.

Yes, expand the courts. If the GOP, once again, pulls off a seat-stealing move like this, like Merrick Garland, there will be nothing they will not try. They have become an extra-legal gang in the government, roaming the halls and vandalizing the structure. This has to stop, there has to be consequences. The Constitution has no set number of judges to the Court, that limit is set by congress. The court over its history has been expanded five times; starting at six seats, going up to ten in 1837-1866, and then back to the current nine in 1869. If the Democrats take the Senate, expand the Court to 11-13 justices, negating the two stolen seats and restoring balance to the SCOTUS. It’s fair, legal, and needed. And not just the Supremes, the federal judiciary at-large should be expanded as well.

Announce this plan now. The GOP might actually think and back down, I doubt it, but they might. This entire Trump term has been about smashing and trashing the rules, and the checks and balances of the government itself, stripping out the oversite and grabbing power. Nowhere is this more evident than in the judiciary. Not just the Supreme Court, but the lower courts as well. Lists of unqualified, far-right ideologues were thrown robes and told to take a seat on the bench. This cannot be allowed to continue.  

Look at the damage to the integrity and reputation of the court wrought by the GOP and the conservatives on it: from the 2000 Bush V Gore travesty (a decision not driven by law but politics) and then the McConnell gambit of making up a ‘rule’ out of whole cloth to deny Merrick Garland a fair hearing, staining the eventual holder of the seat, and all their decisions, with illegitimacy.  

 Four: You got the senate? Vote in Puerto Rico and Washington DC as states, that will give the Democrats a possible four more senators to form a bulwark against the GOP, one that will be hard to overcome. Then, start passing the rule changes needed to stop this nonsense that Trump and McConnell have been pulling for the past four years.

Action is needed. People are tired, people are angry. This is the action needed.

The Fire This Time

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg has died. In case you’ve been living under a bush the past several decades, she was a hell of a woman. In her 21 years on the bench (appointed by President Clinton) she has been an inspiration to friends and not-friends, ruling with passion and honor. During that time, she’s personally battled both with colon cancer, and won, and then pancreatic cancer in 2009. She fought it hard for 11 years, but succumbed on Sept 18th, in the Year of our Hell, 2020.

We have now gone from ugly election, in the middle of a pandemic that has killed 203,361 Americans, to a full-pitched political battle for the direction of the country for decades to come.

It didn’t have to happen. It really didn’t.

In 2016, Justice Antonin Scalia, died suddenly. With 11 months still left on his term, President Obama nominated Merrick Garland, just the kind middle-of-the-road jurist that was Obama’s speed. All taht threre was to do now for the Senate was to follow the Constitution, hold hearings and a vote. Easy.  

No. Anything but a far-right fire breather would sway the court and change the majority, which is historically one of the farthest-right ones in decades. This can never be. So, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, already famous for a reputation of ignoring rules when it came to accruing himself and his party power, literally just made up an excuse not to do his job.

“The American people‎ should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new President.”

Mitch McConnell, 2016.

Complete bullshit, with no legal or Constitutional basis, but the right-wing Senators and pundits cranked out volumes defending it, casting aside any reputation for seriousness they might have left. Really, they’re a machine of obfuscations and out-of-context quoting. They were fooling nobody, probably not even themselves. This was no stand of integrity by a man who has displayed little his entire career, this was yet another smash the rules power grab.

And he got away with it. 

And the GOP and Trump have gleefully proclaimed their willingness to destroy the remaining public legitimacy of the Supreme Court.

Full screeching stop.

It didn’t have to happen. Still doesn’t.

Here we are, another justice beloved by their ‘side’ and died, some 40 days before a presidential election. How is that infamous ‘McConnell Rule’ applied?

“President Trump’s nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate,”

Mitch McConnell, 2020.

One Mitch, two different rules for two different presidents. And this is why the GOP is a party of hypocrites.

I’m just totally shocked. This is my shocked face. May never go back.

How bad is the hypocrisy? You have probably seen the quotes a dozen times by now, but here they are:

Lindsey Graham (R-SC), 2018:

“I’ll tell you this...if an opening comes in the last year of president Trump's term and the primary process has started we'll wait to the next election.”

“I want you to use my words against me. If there’s a Republican president in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said let’s let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination."

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.)

Late in 2016, in an op-ed defending the McConnell’s decision: “voters — not a lame-duck president — should decide the composition of the highest court in the land.”

Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.)

“The next president of the United States should have the opportunity to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court. Our next election is too soon and the stakes are too high; the American people deserve a role in this process as the next Supreme Court Justice will influence the direction of this country for years to come.”



Sen. Susan Collins (R-MN) have said similar things, as has Sen. Lisa Mukowski (R-AK), Mitt Romney (R-UT) is a wild card in this, sometimes showing some backbone. We’ll see.

Now, I suppose they’re not actually hypocrites yet, as they haven’t announced which they’ll vote, but past performance predicts future actions. They’re already coming up with bullshit exemptions to a bullshit rule, like the kid in a cops and robbers game calling out excuses why he wasn’t really shot.

Now, the question is; will they hold to what they have said in the past, or will it be exposed as so much ‘of-the-moment, forget-it-later’ hypocrisy? Well, looks like McConnell has probably solved that one for us. He will gather, pressure and threaten his caucus until he gets the result he wants, he sees what as his job; principles are things that stand between him and what he wants, he doesn’t understand them. This was already going to be a divisive election, one with decades long implications poised to make or break us as a country; now it could be a bloodbath.

It doesn’t have to happen, it really doesn’t. If Trump, McConnell and the GOP would put, for once, country above party, we can step back from the abyss. McConnell would abide by his completely made-up rule, and the choice would go to whomever won the presidential election. McConnell, of course, would never consider such a thing. He makes and breaks rules as it occurs to him to do so; when one is no longer convenient, new one’s spring forth from the head of Zeus, given the little ‘legitimacy’ that McConnell has left, and is treated as if it was always there in the first place.

Maybe the far-right’s beloved Federalist Society could step in to halt the coming destruction, announcing that the seat open should be left open. This would go a long way to cooling the flames and give cover to Republicans who might not to burn down the SCOTUS, not so soon at least.

There is literally no way this will happen.

The Federalist Society, McConnell and the GOP have been on a literal RBG death watch for years now, probably hitting refresh on their browsers to keep check, lists of names already disseminated and ready to announce.

Do I sound cynical? Decades of watching the GOP has made me so. I know to put nothing past them, to ‘trust but verify’ in Reagan’s smug but utterly nonsensical phrase. But I can’t even do that anymore.  

Mitch McConnell could have ended it, simply by following his nonsense ‘rule’ (not a rule), but he cannot pass up yet more power for his dying party. So, he will not.

Trump also could stop it, but he also cannot. This is his ultimate owning of the libs’ and he lives for the moment he can put his boot to the back of his ‘enemies’ neck and grind their face into the dirt.  

They like to see the world burn and fate has given them a blowtorch.

Maybe, just maybe, those Republican senators quoted above, maybe joined by Mitt Romney, will step up to save their party and country and vote either ‘no’ or ‘present’. Or just announce their intentions, denying McConnell and stopping the official vote at all.

But that wouldn’t stop them; the right would tar and feather them, in the press and literally if they could. They’d be fielding death threats like leaves in a windstorm. And Trump and McConnell would hold their vote anyhow.

Save the party or the country.

And the world will burn.