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Sen. Merkley: If Gorsuch Is Confirmed, Every 5-4 Decision Will Be Illegitimate
Real Clear Politics ^ | March 30, 2017 | Tim Hains

Posted on 03/30/2017 5:06:55 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

Sen. Jeff Merkely says a decision to use the 'Nuclear Option' to confirm Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court would "destroy the integrity of the Senate" and "highly politicize the [Supreme] court."

"If this process goes through, every 5-4 decision will be one we will look at and say that it is not really legitimate, because that Supreme Court Justice wasn't really legitimate," he said.

"If we change it to a simple majority, that means the next president will have an easier time approving appointments, and might decide to go further to the left or right outside of the mainstream. Obama went right down the middle, and unfortunately, President Trump has not."

(Excerpt) Read more at realclearpolitics.com ...


TOPICS: Oregon; Issues; U.S. Senate
KEYWORDS: democrats; gorsuch; merkley; oregon; scotus; supremecourt; trump
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To: Hotlanta Mike
Stupid democrats, you followed Harry Reid off the cliff and the tables have turned. Enjoy the rest of your term being in the minority...

Good point.

Of course, Merkely is not addressing "us", he is speaking to the CNN audience, as well as snow flakes, school teachers and professors who, as a group, are on the long march.

They recently nailed the popular vote with an obvious anti-Ameican traitor/ criminal felon and are now working on the electoral college.

61 posted on 03/30/2017 6:46:42 PM PDT by frog in a pot (Political Correctness: defining what speech, thoughts and attitudes are acceptable.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
"If we change it to a simple majority, that means the next president will have an easier time approving appointments, and might decide to go further to the left or right outside of the mainstream. Obama went right down the middle, and unfortunately, President Trump has not.”
Big talk.

President Trump followed through on the Republican Senate’s decision that the 2016 election would decide who nominated the replacement for Justice Scalia by publishing a list of potential nominees. Although the fact that there were 20 names on the list diluted the ability of the Democrats to focus on Judge Gorsuch individually, the Democrats did have the advantage that each and every name on the list constituted a potential vulnerability for the Trump candidacy. The Democrats need only have found one vulnerability of one candidate - and they could have said, “If you elect Trump he will nominate Judge X - and Judge X is terrible.”

The Democrats failed to convince enough voters in enough states the even one of the names on that list was “out of the mainstream.” The reality that exposes is that although Democrats prattle about “the mainstream” as if it were a wholly owned subsidiary of the Democratic Party, Democrats can’t be specific about their programs for America without losing votes.

Here’s a hint: Just because journalists claim to be objective does not mean they define the mainstream of the public.


62 posted on 03/30/2017 6:51:52 PM PDT by conservatism_IS_compassion (The idea around which ‘liberalism’ coheres is that NOTHING ACTUALLY MATTERS except PR.)
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To: SkyDancer
So Reid wanted the nuclear option, got it and now when the Republicans use it it’s not legit? So whenever a 5-4 decision comes down that’s not what the Democrats want they’ll refuse to abide by it...??

The rational and obvious response is the only adult response I can think of.
The GOP should simply announce that any past Supreme Court decision from the last 24 years, which is in conflict with Constitutional principles by the GOP, will be considered null and void...

It should actually be a good thing. AND ignored.

Any calm civilized comment from the loyal opposition that might result can be calmly considered for national discussion and debate.

63 posted on 03/30/2017 6:54:17 PM PDT by publius911 (I SUPPORT MY PRESIDENT?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

History will prove otherwise. There’s no difference between the nuclear option on circuit court judges and supreme court judges.

Just keep running the speech where Joe Biden tells us Presidents to get to pick Judges in their last years of office.


64 posted on 03/30/2017 6:55:10 PM PDT by Fhios
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To: publius911

And the MSMLSD would go ballistic. Goodie.


65 posted on 03/30/2017 6:55:16 PM PDT by SkyDancer (I Believe In The Law Until It Interferes With Justice)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

They know he’ll be confirmed.


66 posted on 03/30/2017 7:07:44 PM PDT by headstamp 2 (Fear is the mind killer.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

If the Dems force a “nuclear option” to get even they will surely suffer when Ginsburg’s replacement is chosen.


67 posted on 03/30/2017 7:23:28 PM PDT by Mike Darancette (Make lemonade.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Excuse me. Isn’t EVERY Decision already politicized? What makes this one any different?


68 posted on 03/30/2017 7:39:59 PM PDT by OrangeHoof (Get used to it - President Donald J. Trump)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Clarence Thomas was confirmed with a 52-48 vote.

Alito was confirmed with a 58-42 vote. This followed a 72-25 vote for cloture.

Filibusters were rare in SCOTUS nominees. Abe Fortas was stopped by a filibuster, but that was during an election year from a lamb-duck LBJ, in 1968. And the Dems were the majority party, who failed to confirm their on POTUS’s nominee.

There is nothing historically sacred about filibusters being applied to SCOTUS appointments. This is a very recent phenomenon.


69 posted on 03/30/2017 7:58:18 PM PDT by leftcoaster
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Obama went right down the middle
70 posted on 03/30/2017 8:02:03 PM PDT by RightGeek (FUBO and the donkey you rode in on)
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To: I-ambush

I see what you did there.

Oh by the way, Sotomayer and Kagen are both bull dyke lesbos.


71 posted on 03/30/2017 8:11:50 PM PDT by Flavious_Maximus
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To: Raycpa

.03


72 posted on 03/30/2017 8:12:25 PM PDT by mcshot (MSM = MST = Main Stream Thash. They report all but the truth.)
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To: Hugin
And “super-precedents” that can never be changed (per Diane Feinstein).

This pig has really pissed me off. The hatred I now feel for her is right up there with my permanent hatred for everything islam...

Even our Constitution (if not our Bill of Rights) has a means of changing via amendment, and is inferior to this bi***'s delusional invention of a "superprecedent?"

If it's a civil war they want, they are certainly determined to avoid not doubling down on the obvious treasonous behavior.

Isn't that rather careless of them?

73 posted on 03/30/2017 9:11:24 PM PDT by publius911 (I SUPPORT MY PRESIDENT?)
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To: Flavious_Maximus

Ahem, a little correction:

Sotomayer and Kagen are both bull dyke COMMIEPROG lesbos.


74 posted on 03/30/2017 9:18:37 PM PDT by little jeremiah (Half the truth is often a great lie. B. Franklin)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
'Nuclear Option' to confirm Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court would "destroy the integrity of the Senate"

If it can do that then Reid has already accomplished it. Actually the "integrity of the Senate was voted away with the ratification of the 17th Amendment.

75 posted on 03/30/2017 9:19:05 PM PDT by arthurus
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I live in OR and he makes me want to vomit. If I’ve eaten something really bad and need to get rid of it fast, I can read his website. I’m actually on his email list since I complained about his positions. Of course he never reads my emails, but now I’m on his list.

He’s loathesome beyond words.


76 posted on 03/30/2017 9:21:25 PM PDT by little jeremiah (Half the truth is often a great lie. B. Franklin)
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To: Hotlanta Mike
I think maybe a few million people made the observation that Reid had best consider what the future would be like when the other party might control of the Senate with the change Reid made in procedure. Change the rules to benefit your side and then the other side gets the ball and they are playing by the rules you made and it now benefits them. It is all so horribly unfair!
77 posted on 03/30/2017 9:21:51 PM PDT by arthurus
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To: SkyDancer

Reid and all the Democrats thought they were on the cusp of taking total power and sweeping away all the opposition with even show trials and mass incarceration, maybe mass executions. The intellectual left, the theorists of the ideology, have forecasted these things openly and they thought they had arrived.


78 posted on 03/30/2017 9:24:29 PM PDT by arthurus
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To: Trump20162020
VP candidate Kaine promised to nuke the filibuster. Here's hoping republicans fulfill that promise.
79 posted on 03/30/2017 9:27:19 PM PDT by Sgt_Schultze (If a border fence isn't effective, why is there a border fence around the White House?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Like Obamacare?


80 posted on 03/31/2017 12:36:16 AM PDT by Organic Panic (Flinging poo is not a valid argument)
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