All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[Darkspellmaster]

Biden's not answering questions about packing the court because he doesn't want to feed Fox News talking points.

It's definitely getting packed.

Given the situation I would say its a no brainer. He's already said he would sign Roe v Wade into law if they tried to screw with it. I hope there's a way to stop her. Wouldn't we need like 9, 11 or 15 justices for a tie breaker situation?

[Revolutionary_Jack]

He's celebrating that the trump administration has reached their goal of 200,000 COVID deaths.

It's gonna be 400,000 by January per Fauci.

Fauci was the first official who projected 200,000 deaths in March (https://www.npr.org/sections/coronav...he-coronavirus) said that was a "middle-of-the-road" estimate and he said that if America gets its act together, it would be lower.

So no way is this a "good job" at all.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

Given the situation I would say its a no brainer. He's already said he would sign Roe v Wade into law if they tried to screw with it. I hope there's a way to stop her. Wouldn't we need like 9, 11 or 15 justices for a tie breaker situation?

If Barrett gets the job, then it's 6-3 Conservative majority. For the Dems to even the odds, it would need to add 3 justices taking the total to 12.

As for making "Roe v. Wade" into law. That can be done if the Dems have both houses and the WH. But if a conservative judiciary struck down Roe v. Wade it can definitely strike down any law the Dems come up with, unless they keep it off Judicial Review (which again is a temporary measure and not much of a defense against a bunch of SCOTUS cons with 40 years left on the court).

[KNIGHT OF THE LAKE]

Democrats should punt on this hearing. It’s a no win. She comes off as intelligent and well spoken and their is too much precedent for her to evade questions on future rulings. She’s getting confirmed. Even CNN is talking about her being an easy confirmation vote in any other circumstance.

The attack strategy is Republican hypocrisy. Get out of this trap, move on to that.

[Iron Maiden]

What you said made me think of the kind of video the Lincoln Project might make. Taking that clip of Trump dancing and overly it on top of a graveyard representing all those who died this year.

I would really like to see this happen. He's celebrating only for himself. If he really cared about people, he would tell everyone in that mob to go home and don't come out if you are not wearing a mask and practicing social distancing.

[Iron Maiden]

Democrats should punt on this hearing. It’s a no win. She comes off as intelligent and well spoken and their is too much precedent for her to evade questions on future rulings. She’s getting confirmed. Even CNN is talking about her being an easy confirmation vote in any other circumstance.

The attack strategy is Republican hypocrisy. Get out of this trap, move on to that.

I have to reluctantly agree. I've been following some of the Q&A on Twitter and she's not going to say anything revealing. There's an outside chance she may disappoint them on future rulings. If I were to meet her in person I would like to ask her how one can be an originalist on the Constitution when it's had to be "fixed" on issues of slavery, women voting, etc.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Democrats should punt on this hearing. It’s a no win. She comes off as intelligent and well spoken and their is too much precedent for her to evade questions on future rulings. She’s getting confirmed. Even CNN is talking about her being an easy confirmation vote in any other circumstance.

The attack strategy is Republican hypocrisy. Get out of this trap, move on to that.

Can’t argue that. Barrett could strip naked, hop up on the table and sing Ice-T’s “Cop Killer” while gyrating like a K-Pop singer and she’d STILL be confirmed. Hell, Republicans would even praise her for displaying rap skills. This is a fight Democrats have zero chance of winning, no matter how hard try, if anything, the perceived image of Dems ganging up to browbeat a woman would make them look bad in the eyes of voters. By moving on to focus on Republican hypocrisy, the question that should be asked of GOPers is this: “How does seating a Justice benefit Americans in the short term as they struggle with the virus, unemployment and the economic downturn?”

[Revolutionary_Jack]

If I were to meet her in person I would like to ask her how one can be an originalist on the Constitution when it's had to be "fixed" on issues of slavery, women voting, etc.

If you did she would blather politely about her family, and how she's not going to comment on rulings, and all the while she will think, "F-k you I'm on the court, I can do whatever I want, now grovel on your feet, you rebel scum".

Originalism is grand bs. Always was and always will be. It was an intellectual con that was never followed and observed by anyone till the 80s and it was propagated by the likes of Bork and Scalia.

Even Republican judges didn't buy that until the 2000s when Scalia acolytes like Roberts and Alito joined in.

[BeastieRunner]

Of course, there's also Plan B, or something for Dems to use alongside court-packing. Lucian K. Truscott describes it here, basically limit the Judicial Review altogether:
(https://www.salon.com/2020/09/26/the...to-fight-back/)



Judicial Review changes means that the Dems can restrict what cases come to the desk of the SCOTUS so, abortion cases and voting rights cases or any pet right wing causes or anything pertaining to legislation they are going to pass simply won't come to the desk of the SCOTUS.

The catch is that Judicial Review as with anything is conditional on the Dems being in power, and is subject to the Republicans countering back and coming back and putting all of it on table again. As for cutting funding of SCOTUS to force the judges to do more work and so on...that will punish the Liberal judges (including Stephen Breyer current oldest member of SCOTUS--obviously gonna retire when Biden takes office and Dems take senate) as well as Conservative ones.

I think fundamentally court-packing is what needs to happen, make it 6-5, and then use Judicial Review and that will intimidate Roberts enough.

Plan b sounds bad.

Remember when Obama "ruled from the bench" with EOs? Now 45 is doing that.

Do you really want the GOP doing that? Because they will do it better than the Dems. Scorched earth politics needs to die with a Biden presidency.

Undoing the courts the right way will ensure we do not have another extreme polar shift from left to right.

[Tami]

A conservative activist’s behind-the-scenes campaign to remake the nation’s courts - May 21, 2019

Leonard Leo stepped onto the stage in a darkened Florida ballroom, looked out at a gathering of some of the nation's most powerful conservative activists and told them they were on the cusp of fulfilling a long-sought dream.

For two decades, Leo has been on a mission to turn back the clock to a time before the U.S. Supreme Court routinely expanded the government’s authority and endorsed new rights such as abortion and same-sex marriage. Now, as President Trump’s unofficial judicial adviser, he told the audience at the closed-door event in February that they had to mobilize in “very unprecedented ways” to help finish the job.

“We’re going to have to understand that judicial confirmations these days are more like political campaigns,” Leo told the members of the Council for National Policy, according to a recording of the speech obtained by The Washington Post. “We’re going to have to be smart as a movement.”

[WestPhillyPunisher]

A conservative activist’s behind-the-scenes campaign to remake the nation’s courts - May 21, 2019

And maybe turn back the clock to before the Civil Rights Act and the 19th amendment. Why not return Blacks and women to their place as second class citizens while the opportunity presents itself?

[Robotman]

Damn. It looks like the voter suppression in Texas is on again.

A U.S. federal appeals court panel on Monday upheld Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s order to shut down dozens of mail ballot drop-off sites weeks before November’s election.

The ruling comes after a federal judge on Friday halted the order, which allowed for only one absentee ballot drop off location for every county, regardless of its size.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...tions-n1243074

[Iron Maiden]

A conservative activist’s behind-the-scenes campaign to remake the nation’s courts - May 21, 2019

And since the POTUS nominates and the Senate confirms they've had their way for a while now. Even when a Obama was POTUS Grim Reaper Mitch made sure he didn't get many of his picks on the federal court vacancies filled. There were 44 vacancies at the beginning of his presidency and 88 and the end. Many were short on qualifications as I recall. But this is where your future nominees for the Supreme Court emerge. Barrett was appointed by Trump in 2017 for the U.S. Court of appeals for the 7th Circuit, putting her on track for a Supreme Court vacancy.

[Iron Maiden]

Damn. It looks like the voter suppression in Texas is on again.

A U.S. federal appeals court panel on Monday upheld Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s order to shut down dozens of mail ballot drop-off sites weeks before November’s election.

The ruling comes after a federal judge on Friday halted the order, which allowed for only one absentee ballot drop off location for every county, regardless of its size.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/202...tions-n1243074

I'd be curious to see who the judges are on that federal appeals court and who appointed them.

[Kirby101]

I'd be curious to see who the judges are on that federal appeals court and who appointed them.

Republicans, appointed by Trump.