‘Your credibility... will die in this room’

[mrjurrs]

‘Your credibility... will die in this room’

Senate Democrats vow the GOP will regret confirming Barrett to the Supreme Court on the eve of the election.

www.politico.com

The manner in which McConnell and Graham have engineered this coup is going to leave a mark and a stain. I anticipate (and look forward to) Democrat judicial "rebalancing" after November.

First, eliminate the filibuster. Second, expand the federal bench by 50 judges (last increased in 1990, US population has risen 90 million since then) and fill those seats. Third, add D.C. as the 51st state. Fourth, reform the SCOTUS. 18 year terms, each President appoints two justices, if an extra vacancy occurs, the replacement would only serve the remainder of the term.

 

[craig]

The filibuster is not in the constitution... It's simply a rule the senate adopted and remove...

I fear its removal. It will give parties even more power to divide us. The moderates who are now required to cross party lines to pass legislation will not be necessary and party extremists will be in control. Parties are not in the constitution and should not be enabled by government infrastructure.

 

[BlueTex]

I fear its removal. It will give parties even more power to divide us. The moderates who are now required to cross party lines to pass legislation will not be necessary and party extremists will be in control.

I don't fear removing it all.. Pass M4A, gun control, expand the supreme court, voting rights, etc. and then let the GOP run on overturning these... They will be as successful as their attempts to repeal Obamacare...

 

[craig]

I don't fear removing it all.. Pass M4A, gun control, expand the supreme court, voting rights, etc. and then let the GOP run on overturning these... They will be as successful as their attempts to repeal Obamacare...

It has only been only 150 years since 2% of the population was killed because extremists divided us and politics broke down. My grandmother saw her grandfather in his blue uniform. Believe me things can get very bad if we do not govern from the middle were the actual majority lies.

 

[haymarket]

It has only been only 150 years since 2% of the population was killed because extremists divided us and politics broke down. My grandmother saw her grandfather in his blue uniform. Believe me things can get very bad if we do not govern from the middle were the actual majority lies.

You certainly could be correct about the majority in the middle. But how did you arrive at that conclusion?

We know that some 30 to 40% are Trumpkins and they are far right deplorables. On the Dem side it looks like at least at least a quarter of the population is left and progressive.

Perhaps once upon a time the middle was the majority but I think you can make a case that the middle is shrinking and the extremes of left and right are increasing.

 

[BlueTex]

It has only been only 150 years since 2% of the population was killed because extremists divided us and politics broke down. My grandmother saw her grandfather in his blue uniform. Believe me things can get very bad if we do not govern from the middle were the actual majority lies.

you don’t think the middle supports these?

 

[ttwtt78640]

Just for the sake of clarity, nothing in the US Constitution limits the number of justices on the Supreme Court.

Equally absent are any rules restricting when or even if the Senate will vote to confirm SCOTUS appointees.

 

[craig]

you don’t think the middle supports these?

We won't know unless moderates that reside in both parties can caucus and overrule the leadership. Supermajority is probably the only mechanism surviving that allows that to happen. Moderates want compromise.

 

[ttwtt78640]

Collins won't vote on her before the election. Will that matter?

Only if that results in less than 50 republicant votes to confirm.

 

[craig]

you don’t think the middle supports these?

Most voters are not political. There are a member of one of the two parties because their family was or where they grew up and they will almost never switch. They don't understand ideology. They just want things to work. The parties take advantage of that fact to marginalize the middle and govern from the extremes.

 

[BlueTex]

Most voters are not political. There are a member of one of the two parties because their family was or where they grew up and they will almost never switch. They don't understand ideology. They just want things to work. The parties take advantage of that fact to marginalize the middle and govern from the extremes.

That really doesn't answer the question... Do you think the middle supports?

M4A or some version of a public option?

A voting rights bill?

Universal background checks for firearms?

Expansion of the supreme court?

 

[craig]

That really doesn't answer the question... Do you think the middle supports?

M4A or some version of a public option?

A voting rights bill?

Universal background checks for firearms?

Expansion of the supreme court?

Yes I do but with some caveats. Not supreme supreme court expansion, that will be an escalation that never ends. Better to impose term limits and reinstate supermajority confirmation.
We have background checks without loopholes in my state CO. I think even stricter gun laws can be passed if 2nd amendment guarantees are also included.
Make social security for all the option. It already work well. The middle love social security. They understand it. They never understood the affordable care act. I don't understand it. Enroll medicaid recipients in social security. Private insurance will wither away because it couldn't compete

 

[BlueTex]

Yes I do but with some caveats. Not supreme supreme court expansion, that will be an escalation that never ends. Better to impose term limits and reinstate supermajority confirmation.
We have background checks without loopholes in my state CO. I think even stricter gun laws can be passed if 2nd amendment guarantees are also included.
Make social security for all the option. It already work well. The middle love social security. They understand it. They never understood the affordable care act. I don't understand it. Enroll medicaid recipients in social security. Private insurance will wither away because it couldn't compete

Term limits for federal judges without a constitutional amendment would be unconstitutional. My favorite approach is to add at least two more states. That would expand the number of senators to 54, the additional four would almost certainly be democrats and provide real representation for places like DC and/or Puerto Rico...

 

[craig]

Term limits for federal judges without a constitutional amendment would be unconstitutional. My favorite approach is to add at least two more states. That would expand the number of senators to 54, the additional four would almost certainly be democrats and provide real representation for places like DC and/or Puerto Rico...
[/QUOTE
Would age limits be constitutional?
If Puerto Rico votes for it then yes. That's how the other territories became states. DC is different. Its electorate should be returned to Maryland and Virginia. If we make new states by dividing existing states Texas will divide and make six new states and at least four will be republican.

 

[Moon]

They've made a calculation.

Control the SC for a generation. The Dems would have to add 4 justices that would vote liberal to have a liberal court. Not likely to succeed. Not likely, given control of the Senate, enough Dems would go for that. They don't stick together like the Reps do. I doubt that the Joe Manchins would go for it.

Whoever gets voted out of office can either comfortably retire or take a one-year vacation then become a lobbyist, getting paid more than a US Senator.

Controlling the higher courts, which the Reps have done by gaining control of the WH, the Senate and the majority of states (starting about 15 yrs ago = redistricting/gerrymandering/etc), have allowed them to achieve their #1 goal of controlling the fed appeals and SC courts.

Gerrymandering has zero impact on who is in the Senate or the White House. It can only impact state races and the House if Representatives, which as I recall, the Democrats won in 2018.

 

[craig]

Gerrymandering has zero impact on who is in the Senate or the White House. It can only impact state races and the House if Representatives, which as I recall, the Democrats won in 2018.

Except for Maine and Nebraska.

 

[Moon]

Except for Maine and Nebraska.

Yeah, I was too lazy to add them to my post.

 

[JasperL]

Senate Republicans made a huge mistake not working with the Democrats to delay the confirmation until after the election. They could have had a tacit agreement with the Democrats to restore the supermajority requirement for confirmation. They could still do it.

That was not going to happen - let the GOP confirm two or three SCOTUS appointments by majority vote, then Democrats voluntarily give McConnell the gun to shoot them in the head again on any seats coming up in the next Democratic administration. Anyone who trusts the GOP at their word is an idiot and a fool.

 

[JasperL]

This is why if Trump is reelected and the GOP keeps the senate, they should go ahead and put another 4 to 6 justices on the bench. 2008 we learned all bets were off when they rammed obamacare through.

Rammed it through.....with...60 votes, after McConnell laid down the law that there would be ZERO yes GOP votes no matter how many concessions were made to the GOP.

LOL.

 

[bomberfox]

Trump is just plain old stupid. He thinks by getting barrett appointed it will help him with votes. If anything, it will hurt him and all the down ticket gop folks. I now expect them to lose everything.

Trump is the worst thing to happen to the gop for a long time but then again they've been asking for someone like him for a long time. All the dog whistles over the decades, the innuendo, the allusion the misinformation and disinformation to gin up the base has worked and now it will be the downfall of the gop. Tell me lies, tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies.

Lindsey Graham even predicted Trump will be the death of the GOP and they will have deserved it.

 

[bomberfox]

I fear its removal. It will give parties even more power to divide us. The moderates who are now required to cross party lines to pass legislation will not be necessary and party extremists will be in control. Parties are not in the constitution and should not be enabled by government infrastructure.

The filibuster only gives the minority rule vastly too much power.

 

[craig]

Lindsey Graham even predicted Trump will be the death of the GOP and they will have deserved it.

Like any deal with the Devil. Short term gain for major payback. Democrats have there own extreme devils too.

 

[trouble13]

Rammed it through.....with...60 votes, after McConnell laid down the law that there would be ZERO yes GOP votes no matter how many concessions were made to the GOP.

LOL.

So they evoked an archaic budgetary rule to get it passed with a simple majority vote despite the people of massachutes electing scott brown who ran on voting against it. Democrats got their obamacare passed but its come at a high cost to the party and the country.

 

[craig]

The filibuster only gives the minority rule vastly too much power.

I agree but the minority is not who you think it is. The minority are the extremists of the majority party. The true majority is the combination of moderates from both parties. Supermajority is the only way to fix that problem.

 

[JasperL]

So they evoked an archaic budgetary rule to get it passed with a simple majority vote despite the people of massachutes electing scott brown who ran on voting against it. Democrats got their obamacare passed but its come at a high cost to the party and the country.

Obamacare was passed with 60 votes. I'm not sure what archaic rule you're talking about. It wasn't for the original bill.

They did pass legislation related to it that they used the same "archaic budgetary" rule is used to pass tax cuts like TCJA and budgets nearly every year with a simple Senate majority. It's limited to one piece of legislation each year and can only deal in very limited matters directly impacting spending or taxes. But I guess it's only OK if Republicans do it or something.