Timothy Birdnow

When George W. Bush struggled to even get a hearing for any of his judicial nominees there were some Republicans who suggested the "nuclear option" which was to change Senate rules so that debate could be limited on judicial consent in the Senate i.e. to stop the use of the filibuster. The Democrats - who at the time were a minority in both chambers of Congress - had been filibustering every judicial nominee sent up by Bush, and some Republicans, frustrated at the endless obstruction of the President's agenda, called for an end to this practice. It was not unprecedented; th lie Congressional Budget Act of 1974 made it impossible to filibuster reconciliation bills, for instance. The rules are just that - rules. The Senate adopts them, and the Senate can change them.

But the filibuster is an old rule and one most Senators were reluctant to amend. The GOP refused to invoke the "nuclear Option" when the Democrats were employing the filibuster on Bush's court nominees because 1.they feared reprisal when they were in the minority and 2.the Senate has always prized "comity", that cool, gentlemanly agreeability that differentiates the Senate from the more contentious House of Representatives.

But the Democrats have no such reservations. When the GOP was filibustering Barack Obama's choices they summarily changed the rules, forcing an up or down vote. They left the filibuster in place for Supreme Court nominees, knowing full well they could change them when the time came.

Being a Democrat means never having to say you are sorry. The media will cover for you.

At any rate Obama got to stuff the courts with his choices. Liberal judges now control 70% of appelate courts with Obama appointed one third of the 179 sitting judges. Obama has also appointed 268 lower court judges - seven more than George W. Bush.

Senate Republicans never punished the Democrats for this act. Now Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is stating he will let the Democrats filibuster Trump SCOTUS nominees.

According to The Washington Examiner:

"When Democrats ran the Senate, they changed the rules to allow for simple majority votes for judicial nominees, but not Supreme Court nominees, which can still be filibustered. But despite speculation that Republicans will take this next step, McConnell indicated some resistance to it when asked.

He (Mitch McConnell) said "overreaching after an election, generally speaking, is a mistake." And when pressed on McConnell's approach to working with Democrats in the new Senate, McConnell said the way the chamber is structured requires "some Democratic participation and cooperation."

End excerpt.

Politics and war have much in common, and one does not allow the enemy to strike as he chooses without reprisal. Harry Reid and his cronies stole something from the GOP minority - and they let him do it. Now that the tables are turned they should be punished for that act, so that equilibrium is restored. If your neighbor steals your lawn mower out of your garage and you see it in his do you not take it back? Only the cowardly fools of the GOP would sigh and shrug their shoulders.

McConnell and company need a retaliatory act to make it clear that the next time Democrats try something like this they will be punished. Rules only work if both sides play by them. If the concept of retaliation is too antagonistic to the GOP, they should at least view it through the prism of child rearing, where rules are set and consequences follow for breaking them. A child who refuses to eat his broccoli doesn't get ice cream after dinner. Well, the Democrats don't get to block appointments to the Supreme Court if they won't let the GOP block appointments to lesser courts when THEY are in power. Turnabout is fair play.

Consequences have to be dire enough to discourage future acts of this nature. Strangely, the GOP has never understood that.

McConnoll is not the man to lead the Republicans into the future. Donald Trump, for all his faults, has at least shown the spirit to reply in kind when attacked. George W. Bush never did, which is why he fumbled away the legacy he had, giving America Obama and himself one of the lowest popularity ratings of any Presidents in American history.

As the old saying goes "the coward dies a thousand deaths, the brave man dies but one". Even if the GoP is deafeted, or punished in the future by the Democrats, so be it; it was a clean thing, not the endless bleeding from thousands of papercuts.

Grow a spine, you guys!

Posted by: Timothy Birdnow at 10:32 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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