Posted on 04/06/2017 8:17:27 AM PDT by richardb72
Some ask why Democrats are filibustering Judge Gorsuch, who has received accolades from even some of the most partisan, liberal lawyers. But a clash is inevitable if not over this Supreme Court nominee, then surely over the next. Democrats are about to launch the first, partisan filibuster of a Supreme Court nominee, forcing an end to Senate rules that have helped foster centuries of bipartisanship.
But while everyone is discussing the partisanship over Judge Neil Gorsuchs confirmation, the real question is being ignored: what has caused this increased rancor?
There is a lot at stake. In fact, there is more at stake than ever before.
The Supreme Court has recently considered all kinds of questions that never would have come up before about half a century ago. Can proving discrimination against a few female, Walmart employees serve as proof that the company discriminated against 1.3 million female employees? Does the Federal government have the power to determine who is a religious minister? Are residents undergoing training at a hospital to be considered students or employees? Is carbon dioxide, part of the very air that we breathe out, a pollutant that the EPA can regulate? Does the Constitution forbid prayer at school football games and graduation ceremonies?
When more is at stake, people fight harder to win. That general rule explains a lot, from how competitively people play sports to how hard they fight to win business contracts and elections. Two baseball teams playing in the seventh game of the World Series are going to play harder than two teams competing in August with no chance of making the playoffs. It explains why campaign spending has gone up at the size of government has increased. . . .
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A more powerful federal government means more things the Supreme Court has to meddle in, which raises the stakes for judicial selection. (Under an all-powerful government, the judges would have power over everything, exercised according to who controls THEM.)
Reduce the power and scope of the federal government!
When is SOMEONE going to say, NATIONALLY, if the American people had wanted Merrick Garland, they would have given Hillary the Electoral College. This is not a stolen seat!!
They do this because there is no downside. They get to pander to their base, delay by obstruction, and if they hold power again their nominee gets rammed through and they get to blame Republicans for using the “nuclear option”. Wins all around.
Agree completely. I pray they don’t regain control again
for decades. IF EVER!
I figure the Democrats are trying to punish Gorsuch for the perceived sins of his mother, who was Ronald Reagan’s EPA director.
They are engaged in shooting themselves in the foot.
On the substance, there isn't any real argument. The Garland appointment was for the outright purpose of changing the balance of the vote on the Supreme Court by replacing Scalia's conservative vote with a Liberal. That under circumstances in which there is reasonable room for concern that Scalia's death was not a natural accident.
McConnell would presumably have been better off if he had held a vote rejecting Garland--the Dems didn't have the votes to excuse changing the balance on the Court. It isn't exactly clear why he didn't do that--they may have thought it improved their position in the Senate election to make it clear that the Senate majority would result in a determination of the Court balance.
If they proceed on the current line, which they may, the Court votes that will be at issue will matter a lot more.
Doubtful Kennedy's resignation will be effective until his successor is confirmed. If Ruth goes first, you will have a 5-3 split until her successor is confirmed, hopefully to get to a 6-3 split.
The vote to dispose of the 60% rule is in process now so we will see the result shortly. But it looks as though the Dems are making a big mistake here.
Trump is actually winning this live ongoing poll right now right in California’s leftist liberal heartland -— ( please see the upper right corner of this linked page): http://www.smdailyjournal.com/
Do We Have
A Living
Constitution?
"Until the people have, by some solemn and authoritative act, annulled or changed the established form, it is binding upon them collectively, as well as individually; and no presumption or even knowledge of their sentiments, can warrant their representatives [the executive, judiciary, or legislature]; in a departure from it prior to such an act." - Alexander Hamilton
In the first of the eighty-five "Federalist Papers," Alexander Hamilton emphasized that:
- (Quoted from essay by the same name in "Our Ageless Constitution," 1987)"... it seems to have been reserved to the people of this country, by their conduct and example, to decide the important question, whether societies of men are really capable or not of establishing good government from reflection or choice, or whether they are forever destined to depend for their political constitutions on accident and force."
“What caused this rancor?”
The Democrats assassinated Scalia in their excitement about getting Obama’s hands on yet another Supreme Court nomination. Apparently, appointing three just wasn’t enough!
They tried and couldn’t get “gun control”... Ask Chelsea Clinton.
If activist Supreme Court judges followed the Constitution instead of carving out new “rights” for their constituents the fight over who sat on the court would not be so contentious. When have you seen Republican nominated judges accused of expanding the Constitution vs Democratic nominated judges? Therein lies the fault of continuousness.
I anticipate both a Kennedy and a Ginsberg retirement later this year.
And, who knows what God has in store for Breyer (78)?
Imagine a Justice conservative bent on the court, for years to come.
One or two more conservative Supreme Court appointments and the liberal agenda is dead for at least a generation.
“Wrong, the real reason is as long as the SC is 4-4 then the 9th circus is the de facto SC and the Rats will run everything through there.”
THIS!
Democrats cannot afford a Trump win on his immigration executive order, because that would mean the end to their open border destruction of American.
I wouldn't say that they believe in a living constitution. That's a lie. They only say that to make their position sound reasonable.
They believe in dictatorship and that laws don't apply to the dictators. The constitution is designed to prevent that, so they hate it and ignore it and lie about 'interpreting' it in a softer, gentler, more modern way, while they burn it to ashes.
The American voters have spoken and directly given Republicans power to two of the three branches of government, Executive and Legislative. That is rare and the strongest indication they expect the Judicial branch to be similarly appointed with like-minded people. That was certainly my expectation when I voted. The Democraps are obstructing the will of the majority.
The rats screwed up assassinating Scalia, and they know it.
If the left doesn’t have the court to destroy the Constitution, they have nothing.
Damn the Torpedoes Mr. Trump, Full Steam Ahead.
LOL!
It’s all about money.
Dems need a lot of money for 2018 and they’re doing these insane things to get it.
One Dem Senator talked for 12 (?) hours and got off the floor and immediately sent a fund-raising letter about it.
The radical commie left has grown big enough to control the Democrat party, but not the whole Congress. They know their radical views are opposed by the majority in the country. Hence the only way to make them “law” is to appoint judges who will claim they “found” those laws in the text of the Constitution.
And this is nothing new. Been part of their agenda for decades. But the left never had as tight a grip on the Democrat party before as they do now. Hence they didn’t have the power to make them filibuster even over a clearly moderate nominee.
In this case, they simply want to use the “nuclear option” in ads against Republicans to paint them as “extreme.” The left loves Gorsuch. The most politically astute lefties like Maddow knew he was “their kind” of Republican on day one. The use of the nuke option is a win-win for them. They get Gorsuch on the court instead of a conservative, and they still to get rile up their base by saying the Republicans are doing a lawless, extremist takeover of the country. There is NOTHING to celebrate on this issue for conservatives.
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