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« Reply #1 on: April 11, 2017, 07:29:39 PM » |
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The Patriot Post Digest 4-4-2017
From The Federalist Patriot
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U.S. law is a system of rules that govern behavior. Rules and laws must be followed and not following laws has penalties. In the U.S. laws are not static; they can be amended or repealed, but they must be amended or repealed through a specific process. However, some people — primarily liberal Americans — believe that this process may be circumvented by the rulings of activist judges when laws get in the way of their inclinations.
Gorsuch’s adherence to the law is Democrats' primary objection to his nomination. Secondarily, it’s retribution for Republican refusal to even grant hearings to Barack Obama’s nominee, Judge Merrick Garland32.
This, too, points to a Democrat anomaly. A principle relating to this situation arose in the Senate in 1992, when then-Senate Judiciary Chairman Joe Biden said that filling Supreme Court vacancies “that would occur in the full throes of an election year,” must be held to a different standard. Citing “a majority of his predecessors,” Biden said that the president, George H.W. Bush, should delay naming a replacement, which would de-politicize the nomination, at least for a while.
In March of last year, “in the full throes of an election year,” Barack Obama ignored the advice that Biden, then his vice president, had offered on the matter years before and nominated Judge Garland. Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, however, liked Biden’s theory, and would not schedule hearings for Garland.
Democrats want judges who decide legal issues on whether their decisions fit the passions of the moment or have their preferred impact on the people. It’s outcome-based judicial activism. Therefore Democrats disapprove of judges who follow the Constitution and the law.
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is now leading a filibuster to block a vote to confirm the highly qualified and squeaky-clean Gorsuch as retribution for Garland.
Schumer spent 20 minutes on the Senate floor urging his fellow Democrats to oppose Trump’s nominee. Gorsuch, he said, “was unable to convince me he would be a mainstream justice who could rule free from the biases of politics and ideology.” And Gorsuch “is someone who almost instinctively favors the powerful over the weak, corporations over Americans,” Schumer said. “He declined to answer question after question with any substance,” he complained, referring to Gorsuch’s refusal to express his political beliefs or to prejudge issues that may come before the Court.
Others have equally irrelevant objections:
Sen. Kamala Harris: “As U.S. senators, we have an obligation to also examine a nominee’s legal approach and ask whether he or she considers the impact of those decisions on our society and the daily lives of our people.”
Sen. Patty Murray: “I cannot trust that President Trump is acting in the best interest of our country or our democracy and I cannot support moving forward with his choice for the Court.”
Virginia Democrat and former vice presidential candidate Sen. Tim Kaine opined, “After meeting with Judge Gorsuch and reviewing his testimony and past decisions, I’ve observed that he has repeatedly taken an activist approach to cases involving a woman’s right to make her own decisions about her health.” Kaine clearly does not understand the definition of judicial activism.
Senate Democrats reportedly have the votes in place to sustain a filibuster to prevent a confirmation vote. Unless…
Following the lead of former Democrat Majority Leader Harry Reid, Republicans can use the “nuclear option” to change Senate rules so as to allow a simple majority vote to confirm Gorsuch. Majority Leader McConnell has pledged that one way or another, Gorsuch will be confirmed this Friday. The question is whether McConnell has enough votes for even that. With moderates like Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski on the loose, McConnell may not be able to carry through on his promise.
Schumer and Co. must figure it’s a win-win. Republicans either don’t have the votes for the nuclear option and Gorsuch is blocked, or the GOP forever bears the “blame” for nuking the filibuster. Beyond that, however, Democrats aren’t getting anything. Gorsuch replaces Scalia, keeping the previous balance on the court, and Democrats may not have the filibuster in the future when, say, Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat is at stake.
Perhaps if Ted Kennedy hadn’t character-assassinated Robert Bork, leading to highly ideological and personal Supreme Court confirmation battles, we wouldn’t be here today.
MORE ANALYSIS FROM THE PATRIOT POST
Trump’s Executive Order Is an Energy Boost33 — Undoing the Clean Power Plan is a great move.
Visualizing Sanctuary County Lawlessness34 — Here are the areas most likely to face major financial repercussions.
Equal Pay Day Hypocrisy35 — By all appearances, even Elizabeth Warren privately thinks the “wage gap” is bogus.
BEST OF RIGHT OPINION
Cal Thomas: Gorsuch and The Ghost of Harry Reid36
Stephen Moore: What Congress Can Learn From the Rhode Island Miracle37
Joe Bastardi: Elation and Frustration38
For more, visit Right Opinion39.
OPINION IN BRIEF
Cal Thomas36: “‘Power’ is defined as the ‘ability to do or act’ and having the ‘capability of doing or accomplishing something.’ As long as Republicans have the majority, they should consider using their power. They have the numbers so they have the ability. The question is, are they capable enough to confirm Gorsuch with little support from Democrats? Sometimes it appears Republicans are more concerned about negative press coverage, which they will get simply because they are Republicans, than about the wrath of voters. All politicians use power to advance their agenda. And now that Democrats are in the minority, they are using what little power they have, aided by their like-minded media colleagues, to stymie the Republican agenda. If the nuclear option is necessary to confirm Judge Gorsuch, Republican senators should use it. And they should keep it for all federal judges, just as Democrats did with President Obama’s nominees. This is what Democrats fear most, because with a clear conservative majority on the Supreme Court and more conservatives on lower courts they could no longer expect judges, rather than legislators, to advance their agenda and they would have to be accountable to voters. Sounds to me like a good option.”
SHORT CUTS
Insight: “To educate a man is to unfit him to be a slave.” —Frederick Douglass (1818-1895)
For the record: “You’d be hard-pressed to find a more poorly designed program in the federal budget than Medicaid, the health insurance program for low-income Americans. The costs are shared between the states and the feds, which means that the more money a state wastes under Medicaid, the bigger the check Washington writes to the state. No wonder the program costs keep spiraling out of control.” —Stephen Moore
Observations: “We are in a golden age of people feeling smug and arrogant. It’s not enough to disagree with people, but you have put them in a full nelson and beat their face into the pavement with your moral, epistemological, and theological superiority.” —Nick Gillespie
Equal Pay Day hypocrisy: “The gender pay gap in Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D., Mass.) [office] is nearly 10 percent wider than the national average… Women working for Warren were paid just 71 cents for every dollar paid to men during the 2016 fiscal year.” —The Washington Free Beacon
Dezinformatsiya: “Let us be very clear about this. There is no evidence whatsoever that the Trump team … was spied on illegally. There is no evidence that backs up the president’s original claim. And on this program tonight, we will not insult your intelligence by pretending otherwise, nor will we aid and abet the people who are trying to misinform you, the American people, by creating a diversion.” —CNN’s Don Lemon
And last… “Susan Rice denies exposing the names of Trump staffers under gov surveillance. She claims it was a YouTube video that exposed the names.” —Twitter satirist @weknowwhatsbest
Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis
Managing Editor Nate Jackson
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