Haley gives final proof to the fact that Republicanworthlessmoron is indeed one word. And that there are no "good Republicans" left in the Confederate White People's Treason Party.
Complaining and pointing out the obvious such as the inevitable baseness of Hailey and Alito’s being compromised won’t do it folks. We need focus and strategy… strategy that is visible and bold as well as continuing support for the work of those such as Galvanize USA, FieldTeam 6 and Accelerate Change.
For example, we need major female led marches in each of the battleground states - large, loud, visible, peaceful and calm protests that articulate with clarity the risks in this election, the more women involved the better? We need ways to get these issues front and center in a way shocking people into awareness. The Dems and never Trumpers need to get more bold and we need to encourage and support such strategies. The majority need to be woken up, engaged and enraged - in calm, peaceful ways but determined ways.
Charles, you are so right as far as it goes today. But, I’ve often asked myself where have Democrats been for the last 45 years since Reagan exclaimed “government is not the solution, it’s the problem.” That statement alone annoys me as much as Trumps daily outrageous attacks on people and institutions. But, I digress…
In addition to doing everything you proposed we need to think about what comes after the November election however it turns out - with our expectations focused on democrats winning up and down the ballot. Once November comes we will wake up to more of the same insurrectionist assaults on what’s left of our republic. So, we will need to be strategic about the immediate post election months and the year(s) after. For example, how do we build out a communication network that counters the propaganda of FOX and other extremist media, not to mention bring The New York Times and other so-called “Main Street media” to their senses? How might we get more great Substack writers recognized, etc?
And then the serious work next. How quick can we pass the John L. Lewis voting rights legislation? How soon can we reshape the dialogue, policies and actions to support women’s health care, protect transgender people, and begin turning the corner on the racism that plagues us all these years after the civil war?
How do we re-establish a credible court? How do we get citizens to stand up and speak out demanding that people elected to Congress address the climate crises, gun violence, the overrun border and real immigration reform that the Republicans embraced until they didn’t.
In short, we have a lot of work ahead of us beyond the election regardless of the results. I’d dare say we need to reinvigorate the populous to fully embrace democracy as everyone responsibility - young and older citizens need to be engaged.
Enough! I am simply saying we must build out with your thoughts. Thank you.
Yes, sadly, if the Democrats weren’t so frustratingly inept, we would not be here. And while they’ve passed important legislation and deserve credit for that and for caring, they are in aggregate inept in messaging, connecting with people, framing, staying cohesive, staying toward the middle, fighting like hell, and so much more that matters. They are as much to blame as you’ve stated as the Republicans because they watched it happen and did not organize or appropriately resist, sadly.
Another little discussed strategic error, IMHO, is putting price tags ahead of value on many of the Admistration's accomplishments. I don't want to hear how many Billion$ something reflects - I want to hear what the benefit is. Return on Investment should appeal to Republicans as much as serving the common good should appeal to Democrats.
Cheerleading for the machination of democracy is a hard sell compared to the whinings and denigration of a good president practiced by Fox News (Propaganda) . How does one champion factors which guarantee freedom and liberty against the tide of misinformation and autocracy ?
The Dems have blown it despite many accomplishments. They blew the House in 22 by believing the polling. That was criminally inept. The House was winnable - - Kansas proved the polls were hopelessly wrong!
Charles, I prefer a different word than “inept.” Perhaps we can recognize that they and some of us weren’t paying attention to the path they laid down, one step at a time until Trump came along to blow up the entire government and institutional/constitutional foundations a la the Steve Bannon call to destroy the “administrative state.” I’d say we were all naive until Trump came along with “outrage” and “chaos” along with lies being his stock in trade.
Happy to talk about it offline John. The Rs have been outplaying the Ds in plain light, in the daylight as well as behind the scenes for decades now, with little to no competent response which = incompetent or call it whatever you like… sadly, for decades leaving it up to citizens like us to lead because they haven’t and aren’t to the extent that they should.
No need for offline conversation. I have wondered why Dems didn’t push back long ago. Call it what you want but they failed to confront bull shit when the stink was growing.
“Government is not the solution, it’s the problem.”
Yes, delivered in his calm, actorly, Borax mule team voice with his Hollywood smile and innocuous manner, Reagan hid what was the beginning of the Republican strategy to make Corporations and Capitalism supreme. Greed became “good”, Christianity became a divisive weapon and democracy became a dirty word standing the way of power and profits.
I second that approach. Check out Heather Booth who would have all kinds of ideas and organizing tactics to help you. I just listened to her talk at the SeniorsTakingAction.org Speakers Series yesterday.
You are so right on! It needs to get noisy and fast! Yes back to the marches! More boldness and anger is needed. Everyone needs to vote and not stay home and not waste it on RFK Jr. Everyone... White, Black, Brown, Women, Men, youngsters.... As Jim Morrison said "We got the numbers". But it must be overwhelming... Even then there are Jan 6 games that will be played.... The invitation to ugliness will be there.
To that end, she is no different than 95% of the Republican Party elected leaders. Just look at how far Mitch McConnell, Kevin McCarthy, and Elise Marie Stefanik have come since their lives were threatened on January 6, 2021.
Wrong. It's the start of her future in the new Reich. She's reborn!
And don't count out Kristi Gnome. An arrogant puppy-killer with female Fox hot looks is just what Trump wants. Pence wouldn't kill puppies for Trump on Jan 6 but Kristi will!
Haley would have been in a pole position to lead the Republicans into the necessary renewal and deprogramming after the defendant's defeat in November. Kissing his ring now shows, that she is going all in expecting that the plot against America succeeds. And she knows that in that case at least in her (political) lifetime MAGA will not relinquish power.
It prompted me to start an essay about her meteoric rise, a rising star in the Republican Party, a shooting star burning up in an atmosphere starved of oxygen, gravitational pull of the MAGAlowmaniacs, sucked into the black hole that is the Quadefendant... A lot of celestial possibilities, but it's gonna take some work.
My question is—was she lying about DT in her campaign or is she lying now? Her statement did no good for her any place in the aisles! She’s basically toast in her political aspirations from here on out!
I have a friend who is a Haley fan, which surprised me. I wonder if she will continue to be. And if so, why? I’m unlikely to find out. This is becoming uglier by the day and we can’t afford to get stuck in the muck.
I confess that I was a bit surprised that Haley caved and "kissed the ring." Anyone know why she did that? Did she thing tffg was going to "forgive" her or something?
Jocelyn, Don’t be delusional. Trump will forgive her IF it benefits him. Read 1984. There is no straight line of truth other that when Donald (Big Brother) says.
I have never found anything admirable about Tump/MAGA so I am completely clueless about Haley’s cave. They all seem demented to me. I just want to be done with them all. Very dispiriting bunch of bananas.
She didn't join the cult psychosis in the extreme way but she voted 98% with GOP. She's no friend to America, any more than is, Raffensberger or Kinzinger etc. They all have one Virtue of being anti-Trump but they have the same lousy values and policies as before.
During World War II, the US and Britain treated the Soviet Union as an ally, despite their repressive (and worse) governance, because the paramount need was to defeat Nazi Germany.
Similarly, we liberals need to join hands with principled Republicans to defeat the most dangerous domestic enemy – Donald Trump and Trumpism. The likes of Cheney, Raffensberger, and Kinzinger will not destroy the US even though many of their policy choices are awful, but we need each other in temporary unity to defeat the clear and present dangers – Trump, Trumpsters, and Trumpism.
Hi Michael--- "Principled Republicans" is almost an oxymoron, eh? There are a few who are aligned against Trump, though, and they have been really persistent and unflagging in spirit and ideas. About half or more of podcasts I listen to are run by ex-Repubs -- Lincoln Project, Bulwark, Enemies List, etc. All solid stuff until they go into some more mainstream GOP ideas-- I guess they haven't been totally cured yet!! But they are great allies and I will take them in this context. I saw Raffensperger on Meet the Press last weekend talking about voting security; he and another GOP from PA were on a panel with Jocelyn Benson from Michigan and a fellow Dem from AZ who was also quite strong. Brad was trying to make all kinds of claims of his unique accomplishments --- but still knocking Stacey Abrahms, and claiming that non-citizen voting is a real threat -- as they allegedly caught about 1600 making a try at it. First of all-- if you caught them before they voted then it is not really a problem, or if you cancel their vote then security worked-- bravo!! But also, he did not say for whom these people voted, nor did he give any data on the fake voters or in what way they were not qualified. I suppose we should just infer they are invading hordes from below the border or Muslim terrorists or some other GOP trope, but I wonder if he dare get into the specifics. After all, it was Trump who told his people to vote twice. And-- some cases of "dead voters" were found to be spouses who cast votes for Trump. So Brad gets his Boy Scout medal for standing firm in 2020, and he was great on the phone call with Trump, but I wonder how much is about his own arrogance as opposed to his integrity. But--- I will take it!! He certainly has a long rap sheet of offenses against voting equity in GA as I recall. But we will need people like him in a few months more so than ever. It was a very slim hold in 2020, and the pressure to corrupt the election will be greater this time. Ultimately, they will try to go for an election in the House if they can, and the concierge SCOTUS will uphold it. Well, we can hope for and advocate for the best!!
The photographs of the Appeal to Heaven flag being flown at Alito's vacation home, and being carried by many violent insurrectionists who stormed, broke into, and defaced the Capitol at the direction and urging of Donald Trump, to stop the certification of votes for Biden and overturn the 2020 election, demonstrate beyond questioning that Alito cannot possibly represent an unbiased vote on any case involving Donald Trump's trial on the subject of Jan 6. The fact that both he and the court offered no response about this second anti-democratic flag having been identified as being displayed at Alito's homes, speaks volumes. Alito will not resign. He will not recuse himself. He has been placed where he is by Leonard Leo of the Federalist Society and will not shirk his duties to serve the interests of plutocrats for whom democracy is an annoyance and inconvenience. Roberts will not rein him in. That leaves impeachment or court expansion to prevent the Supreme Court from functioning as a partisan organization. It has currently been captured by the actions of Leonard Leo and Mitch McConnell, and the massive financial support of plutocrats who have ploughed hundreds of $millions of dark money into the effort to lock down the White House, the Congress and the Supreme Court, a thorough minority take-over of government that only massive turn-out at the ballot box in November can defeat. If Trump is re-elected, Leo will no doubt engineer a switch-out of old conservatives for youthful ones who will create a Supreme Court that will remain out of touch with what most Americans want for decades.
In response to this latest desecration of the Supreme Court, I wrote a letter to Chief Justice Roberts yesterday. In it, I offered a suggestion that he call for both Alito and Thomas to retire, perhaps by offering to not pursue action against them. In so doing, the vacancies they'd create would allow President Biden to restore balance to the Court, thereby avoiding the long and arduous prospect of expanding it.
Well Bob, it’s a good effort. Maybe try to get your letter published in the Times as a guest editorial. Stay focused. Keep the messaging in their face.
Still, you did a good thing, Bob! It's such a disappointment that Roberts is so remiss by taking no responsible action on Alito or Thomas. Reading your post made me imagine for a moment what it would be like to have a more honest, non-partisan court. There would still be Kavanaugh and Gorsuch, but it would be a more even situation!
Kathleen, Your disappointment and that of the rest of us is because we let ourselves believe that Chief Justice Roberts was somehow different from those who have been more public in their rhetoric. To wit, Chief Justice Roberts has always been in on the game and now is joining the rest with his more mellow, but no less dangerous demeanor.
Thanks Bob. I think your letter is extremely well done! I'd like to send it myself (with my signature) and encourage dozens of my contacts to do the same. Are you okay with that?
Unfortunately, I can't see an Alito impeachment happening until we at least get a Democratic majority in the House and, hopefully, hold onto (and add to, if possible) our Dem majority in the Senate. However, both Alito and Thomas need to be summarily booted out of the Court as soon as we can do so.
There are remedies that the Congress has in passing term limits and ethics rules and of course expanding the court. It all requires a healthy majority because very few if any Republicans who have waited years for the current situation to unfold will support it. The Republicans have weaponized the courts.
I doubt that passing term limits would apply to sitting jurists. It would take decades to reform the court that way. I'm not saying I'm not in favor of term limits, just that it is no fix for this court, for whom I doubt the limits would apply. Ethics rules could certainly apply. Would they have any retroactive effect for the egregious violations? I would hope they could stop Thomas and Alito from continuing to sit on cases they are connected to.
Other western nations have modernized their court systems with term limits, mandatory retirement age, nonpartisan panels to vet prospective jurists, rotating judges as well as expansion of the numbers of justices. In Canada 75 years and retire. In Germany there are 16 members. Ethics rules while important can be flaunted and any remedy for violation fraught with political infighting. We see how impeachment has worked out as a remedy.
My question would be over what period of time did those modernizations that place and how did the constitutions compare to ours, what laws required legislation action first, etc. I very much would like to see modernization. But I have year some pretty persuasive legal opinions that term limits and age limits could take at least a generation to apply, and considering how many youthful extremists we have, thanks to Trump, who might be exempted from the new regulations, it could take decades to shift the character of the court. Now expanding it could be done more swiftly if Democrats controlled Congress, but it also has its risks if it is not done in a way that prevents the next Republican president from also just adding more jurists. As I understand it, right now there is nothing that defines the number, and if the Democrats get to define it, and then fill all the slots, the Republicans will have a hissy fit.
Expanding the Court will not happen but what if it did? Sooner or later it would 9 to 4 or 13 to 6 in favor of the Fascists. The underlying process is rotten no matter how many. We need term limits and a different nomination process that is not so random and partisan. No more than one new nomination per president. So what if it falls to 8 or 7 in the meantime? There needs to be an ethics code with teeth - - where Alito and Thomas would be out on their ass. Thomas needs to be indicted and gone after for tax violations! The Chief Justice needs to have more power. Senate Judiciary needs more power. It needs a total overhaul.
Any of the multiple potential measures you mention would be helpful. - term limits, limit of number of justices one president can nominate, ethics code with accountability - at this anything at all would be a godsend (as opposed to the "God send" according to the Book of Leo (Leonard, that is)). What exactly could Roberts do if he were so inclined? Which he isn't - his concern about the courts and his reputation pales in comparison to the importance he places on producing decisions that follow the dictates of moral authoritarianism, laissez-faire capitalism, and law and order protection of the rights of property above all others, in all its most extreme form of libertarian cruelty, and whatever benefits the wealth class and the most extreme forms of minority Christianity - think Middle Ages. Peter Irons' book "A People's History of the Supreme Court" is one horrible decision after another. The decisions on the topic of race, including over a century of iimmigration and citizenship decisions driven by rank racism (Ian Haney Lopez' book White By Law" is an eye-opener on this), is a particularly disturbing subset. And it's still happening - the refusal to rein in Republican gerrymandering that destroys one-person, one-vote. It's disgusting, really.
Book of Leo!!! Tragic.... The SCOTUS has made good decisions over the decades-- even this one on rare occasion -- but I think they do so in order to drop bombs on their real agenda items. This particular court is doing its unlevel best to strip away rights as well as protect White Christianity, corporatism and bigotry. It's breathtaking in its arrogance and sweep. They are trying to seed the ground for autocracy. They are making the immoral legal, and when they start to make the illegal legal, then we are into unbridled Fascism. If Trump wins or is installed Memorial Day 2025 will see a very different country than we even have now. When the feckless Roberts retires look for Kavanaugh to succeed him, depending on the President. Thanks for book leads too!!
You always strike the right balance, Robert, to help us see the truth of what is happening. I'm particularly comforted by your assessment of the grifter and his small band of supporters.
Throughout this whole mess, it has concerned me a lot about how the American flag has been used as a pawn to convince a bystander that those flying/waving it are the true patriots. If you choose to fly the pine tree flag or some other symbol of rebellion, please leave the American flag out of it. In my opinion, you can't have both.
Yes.I totally agree with you.On my street in Ohio the American flag of stars and stripes is being flown in tandem with a Trump 2024 flag which to me is a blasphemy of sorts.One flag represents freedom for all and the other flag will take away many of these freedoms.It makes me uneasy and sad to walk by these flags every day.
There are a couple of the same that I drive past almost daily along a busy main road where I live (suburb of Charleston SC), a ginormous American flag and the most recent of the T* flag - one house has been cycling through the election year versions since the start. One house started with the upside down flag when the whole Alito thing hit the news. 😐 It's the various 'patriot/eagle/AR' combos and other demeaning decals and stickers on the pretentious lifted trucks that are like Palmetto bugs all over the roads here that can really bother me, especially when I am staring at one I'm behind in traffic. Way to threaten your fellow citizens, 'patriot'! 😞
As 'having an idea' requires a certain IQ level you probably have a point. But those behind the MAGA movement, ideologically and financially, know exactly what they are doing. Exactly!
I love this: “😐 It's the various 'patriot/eagle/AR' combos and other demeaning decals and stickers on the pretentious lifted trucks that are like Palmetto bugs all over the roads here that can really bother me,….” I recognize those trucks here in Colorado. Intimidating nonsense.
I wasn't sure how widespread the 'MAGA lifted truck' crowd extended outside the region I'm in, but it makes sense they're pretty much everywhere in the Western states as well. I lived in Montana for a handful of years back in the 90's and it tracks from what I saw even back then, although maybe not as many 'vanity' trucks vs actual ranch trucks used for the purpose they were built.
Remember all that fuss about wearing a flag pin?? It very much puts me in mind of "wolf in sheep's clothing " except I think many of those people only see the superficial aspects, helped along by Faux Faul News performative outrage.
I know a guy who always wore a lapel pin of an organization that supported service members and veterans in some way (no doubt, very conservative, as was the guy. Bushie in the day, now a trumper). He would humble brag about his support, yet he never served in the military. When it came time for his 2 sons to go to college, neither applied to a service academy. I’m sure today he considers himself the ultimate “patriot”, whatever that word now means.
It is a laugh that there were more lawyers and GOP politicians with, evidently, free time on their hands, that there were MAGA supporters from the Hoi polloi. Evidently Ohio voters don't mind it if their standard bearer, JD Vance, flip flop on his adamant support for Trump and then his subsequent groveling for the VP slot by venturing up to Manhattan to support a man successfully convicted of rape. RAPE! Where in heaven's name are there basic standards of decency?
And yet, not for all of us. I'm hoping fervently that the garish, boorish clown is sent back to Florida to wallow in pity and grievance with a few more lawsuits for despicable and unpatriotic behavior and speechifying still to be reckoned with. And though my sympathy will be unappreciated, I do nonetheless feel sorry for those whose marriage and/or livelihood depend on serving such a selfish creature.
It seems like the crazy gets exponentially larger every day. It’s like somebody using a lawnmower or a leaf blower ( this should be outlawed with AK 15’s) when you are asleep with your window is open. Time to shut the window from this annoying noice of disinformation.
The point of our Senators asleep at the wheel here is critical. The Republicans drown the media with their continued drone lies. Time for our legislators to step up! Thanks Robert!
You know how the snake that is dying thrashes wilder and wilder and more dangerously? I've always thought that's what would be happening as we approach the election. Hold onto your hats, your principles and work on getting out the vote! Thanks as always!
I'm as old as he is and in much better shape than he is and I cannot imagine a life filled with such constant hatred and venom, an unhealthy diet, drugged to the max, and up all night attacking others. I would have keeled over long ago. Why doesn't he?
When Robert Reich wrote about the defendant's (oh, how I am longing to be able to write 'felon' soon) latest foray into Nazi Land, one reader left the comment: "The only Reich I do like to see in Washington is Robert." Priceless!
It suddenly occurred to me that our nation suffers of a great illness but that to allow it to heal I must absolutely stop worrying, speculating about what will happen in Nov, biting my nails, spending sleepless nights, talking incessantly about my fears. Do I deeply believe in our nation’s potential, its strength, in the symbolism of the Statue of Liberty? Yes!! Yes!!! Then let me fully embody these beliefs in every action I take and every word I speak. That must be my contribution to helping our country heal. And since that type of healing never occurs in a vacuum when I am healed I will not be healed alone. Many others will be too.
Carefully choose the news media brand that tells the truth w/o an agenda, and be watchful (no pun intended here)of your T.V. time. Take a walk in the woods and talk to the trees, bears, deer, raccoons and squirrels . Broadcast journalism is a "Twilight Zone" experience of an unhealthy surreal reality.
Every one of us should contact her 2 US Senators, his Representative and the Speaker of the House to demand a House impeachment of Alito and Thomas and a Senate investigation. They must be held to account for their corrupt and unethical conduct. Justice Roberts should also be called to testify by the Senate to explain the absence of ethical rules that all Federal judges are required to follow except Supreme Court Justices . If he fails to testify he deserves the same fate as Messrs Navarro and Bannon who were sentenced to jail for contempt of Congress.
None of the justices are resigning. Never going to happen. And Biden has said many times, he doesn’t support expanding the court. I hope that changes with a second term, but I’m not holding my breath. Our country is on the brink of fascism and I’m PETRIFIED.
I share your fears that another tRump term is going to be like a Nazi takeover. The idea of outlawing contraception is Stone Age. The MAGAs want women at home caring for infants they have no means of supporting . Child care is not available or affordable for these women so they can hold a job in order to support this family, but if they get pregnant again (because of a man) things will get even worse for the rest of the family. Sounds absolutely heavenly.
My position (don’t know about Biden) is that it is difficult to do. A lot of political capital would need to be expended and the Ds don’t have the necessary firepower. Read the history of FDR’s attempt to expand the Court and why it failed. Not that it cannot be done but there are other measures that can be achieved to modernize our Court system.
There is precedence. There’s no requirement that it’s nine people. It should be 13 to match the number of districts. A good starting point would be to shut down judge shopping.
An interesting snippet from this morning's Washington Post offers a motivation for Durbin's puzzling reluctance to hold hearings on the Supreme Court.
"Durbin’s efforts to hold the Supreme Court accountable are potentially in tension with his efforts to confirm as many judges as possible, for which he needs Republican cooperation. The Senate is currently beating Trump’s record-breaking judicial confirmation pace, confirming Biden’s 200th and 201st judicial nominee on Wednesday."
Or better even: abolish the crazy system of seniority when naming committee chairs. Senator Whitehouse would be a great chairman of the Judiciary Committee.
Where is the American Bar Association???? Industry self-regulation does not work and that applies to attorneys as well. Alito should never have been given a pass by the ABA. (Even commentators on judicial writing remind us of that level of deliberate deception.) While the majorities of Democrats and Biden with their Democratic sweep because each one of us is working hard to achieve the registration and turnout we need, they should create a rotating, independent commission of Senior Judges and academics to review all Supreme Court and Appellate Court nominees. I guess Aileen Cannon reminds us that partisanship in the judicial branch is, simply, a recipe for the loss of democracy, not to mention the trail of damage along the way.
I have had it with the Alito flags, the Guiliani circus and coffee sales, the slow walking of Judge Cannon, and the MTG and Trump bullshit about the FBI trying to assassinate Trump when they raided Mara Lago. I am tired of doing nothing and letting all this behavior go without some type responsive actions. Biden’s speeches while excellent and not cutting it and the media response is pathetic and until Trump realized the Judge would really throw him in jail and would not tolerate his behavior he shut up. I’m. not a willing to tolerate the behavior of these Republicans and like the women in the rain last night marching in front of Alito’s house in protest in New Jersey we need to have our voices heard not for the Republicans but for normal voters who need to hear that many other people are no longer willing to tolerate this behavior. Until the Republicans supporting the MAGA platform and rhetoric feel the push back and outrage it will continue. We have no alternatives.
Dear Stephen, i hear you! And i hope you will use your outrage to work electorally…that is the power we have. Write postcards, phonebank, textbank, canvass, register voters. Etc. And…we can pressure Biden to expand the court when we reelect him. Turn that outrage into action!
With the exception of what's happening with RFK and Joe Biden in the polls, this stuff is getting very scary. The Aryans are coming to get the rest of us.
Haley gives final proof to the fact that Republicanworthlessmoron is indeed one word. And that there are no "good Republicans" left in the Confederate White People's Treason Party.
Complaining and pointing out the obvious such as the inevitable baseness of Hailey and Alito’s being compromised won’t do it folks. We need focus and strategy… strategy that is visible and bold as well as continuing support for the work of those such as Galvanize USA, FieldTeam 6 and Accelerate Change.
For example, we need major female led marches in each of the battleground states - large, loud, visible, peaceful and calm protests that articulate with clarity the risks in this election, the more women involved the better? We need ways to get these issues front and center in a way shocking people into awareness. The Dems and never Trumpers need to get more bold and we need to encourage and support such strategies. The majority need to be woken up, engaged and enraged - in calm, peaceful ways but determined ways.
I would like to see both women and men marching about the loss of reproductive rights and women’s healthcare. wouldn’t that be powerful?
Yes, agree… women led but not just women.
How about making men/fathers co-responsible for pregnancy, abortion, child raising costs, etc..
Yes!
Totally! Everyone's rights are being stolen by MAGA and SCOTUS.
I’m in let me know when it’s happening.
Someone suggested marching on Labor Day. I second that emotion!
Charles, you are so right as far as it goes today. But, I’ve often asked myself where have Democrats been for the last 45 years since Reagan exclaimed “government is not the solution, it’s the problem.” That statement alone annoys me as much as Trumps daily outrageous attacks on people and institutions. But, I digress…
In addition to doing everything you proposed we need to think about what comes after the November election however it turns out - with our expectations focused on democrats winning up and down the ballot. Once November comes we will wake up to more of the same insurrectionist assaults on what’s left of our republic. So, we will need to be strategic about the immediate post election months and the year(s) after. For example, how do we build out a communication network that counters the propaganda of FOX and other extremist media, not to mention bring The New York Times and other so-called “Main Street media” to their senses? How might we get more great Substack writers recognized, etc?
And then the serious work next. How quick can we pass the John L. Lewis voting rights legislation? How soon can we reshape the dialogue, policies and actions to support women’s health care, protect transgender people, and begin turning the corner on the racism that plagues us all these years after the civil war?
How do we re-establish a credible court? How do we get citizens to stand up and speak out demanding that people elected to Congress address the climate crises, gun violence, the overrun border and real immigration reform that the Republicans embraced until they didn’t.
In short, we have a lot of work ahead of us beyond the election regardless of the results. I’d dare say we need to reinvigorate the populous to fully embrace democracy as everyone responsibility - young and older citizens need to be engaged.
Enough! I am simply saying we must build out with your thoughts. Thank you.
Yes, sadly, if the Democrats weren’t so frustratingly inept, we would not be here. And while they’ve passed important legislation and deserve credit for that and for caring, they are in aggregate inept in messaging, connecting with people, framing, staying cohesive, staying toward the middle, fighting like hell, and so much more that matters. They are as much to blame as you’ve stated as the Republicans because they watched it happen and did not organize or appropriately resist, sadly.
Another little discussed strategic error, IMHO, is putting price tags ahead of value on many of the Admistration's accomplishments. I don't want to hear how many Billion$ something reflects - I want to hear what the benefit is. Return on Investment should appeal to Republicans as much as serving the common good should appeal to Democrats.
Cheerleading for the machination of democracy is a hard sell compared to the whinings and denigration of a good president practiced by Fox News (Propaganda) . How does one champion factors which guarantee freedom and liberty against the tide of misinformation and autocracy ?
The Dems have blown it despite many accomplishments. They blew the House in 22 by believing the polling. That was criminally inept. The House was winnable - - Kansas proved the polls were hopelessly wrong!
Charles, I prefer a different word than “inept.” Perhaps we can recognize that they and some of us weren’t paying attention to the path they laid down, one step at a time until Trump came along to blow up the entire government and institutional/constitutional foundations a la the Steve Bannon call to destroy the “administrative state.” I’d say we were all naive until Trump came along with “outrage” and “chaos” along with lies being his stock in trade.
Inept... Weak... Cowardly... Uninspired.... Unmotivated... Unimaginative...
Inept is just the start of it. Dems fell down on the job.
Sorry – We were not *all* naive.
Well, there are always some among us who are prescient or recognize the malice of statements like Reagan offered. It certainly always pissed me off.
Happy to talk about it offline John. The Rs have been outplaying the Ds in plain light, in the daylight as well as behind the scenes for decades now, with little to no competent response which = incompetent or call it whatever you like… sadly, for decades leaving it up to citizens like us to lead because they haven’t and aren’t to the extent that they should.
No need for offline conversation. I have wondered why Dems didn’t push back long ago. Call it what you want but they failed to confront bull shit when the stink was growing.
“Government is not the solution, it’s the problem.”
Yes, delivered in his calm, actorly, Borax mule team voice with his Hollywood smile and innocuous manner, Reagan hid what was the beginning of the Republican strategy to make Corporations and Capitalism supreme. Greed became “good”, Christianity became a divisive weapon and democracy became a dirty word standing the way of power and profits.
Oh, yes!!
I second that approach. Check out Heather Booth who would have all kinds of ideas and organizing tactics to help you. I just listened to her talk at the SeniorsTakingAction.org Speakers Series yesterday.
You Tube Politics Girl - Leigh McGowan "Women are Furious" - Leigh interviewed the new President of Emily's List, Jessica Mackler.
Thanks, Mercedes.
You are so right on! It needs to get noisy and fast! Yes back to the marches! More boldness and anger is needed. Everyone needs to vote and not stay home and not waste it on RFK Jr. Everyone... White, Black, Brown, Women, Men, youngsters.... As Jim Morrison said "We got the numbers". But it must be overwhelming... Even then there are Jan 6 games that will be played.... The invitation to ugliness will be there.
I have been writing to Dick Durbin to ask him to being an impeachment investigation. I will start to do this daily.
If she had but one vertebrae of Liz Cheney's spine....just another feckless Republican jellyfish.
Likely the end of Haley's government career. She simply can't be trusted.
To that end, she is no different than 95% of the Republican Party elected leaders. Just look at how far Mitch McConnell, Kevin McCarthy, and Elise Marie Stefanik have come since their lives were threatened on January 6, 2021.
Wrong. It's the start of her future in the new Reich. She's reborn!
And don't count out Kristi Gnome. An arrogant puppy-killer with female Fox hot looks is just what Trump wants. Pence wouldn't kill puppies for Trump on Jan 6 but Kristi will!
Zip. Nada.
No guts, brains or integrity. Just wants to be VP.
ALSO, rest my case that her primary voters will switch to trump in general
🤞
Haley would have been in a pole position to lead the Republicans into the necessary renewal and deprogramming after the defendant's defeat in November. Kissing his ring now shows, that she is going all in expecting that the plot against America succeeds. And she knows that in that case at least in her (political) lifetime MAGA will not relinquish power.
Perhaps Haley's Comet has finally flown too close to the sun.
That’s a good one🙏
It prompted me to start an essay about her meteoric rise, a rising star in the Republican Party, a shooting star burning up in an atmosphere starved of oxygen, gravitational pull of the MAGAlowmaniacs, sucked into the black hole that is the Quadefendant... A lot of celestial possibilities, but it's gonna take some work.
My question is—was she lying about DT in her campaign or is she lying now? Her statement did no good for her any place in the aisles! She’s basically toast in her political aspirations from here on out!
I have a friend who is a Haley fan, which surprised me. I wonder if she will continue to be. And if so, why? I’m unlikely to find out. This is becoming uglier by the day and we can’t afford to get stuck in the muck.
Uglier by the hour...
I confess that I was a bit surprised that Haley caved and "kissed the ring." Anyone know why she did that? Did she thing tffg was going to "forgive" her or something?
Jocelyn, Don’t be delusional. Trump will forgive her IF it benefits him. Read 1984. There is no straight line of truth other that when Donald (Big Brother) says.
I have never found anything admirable about Tump/MAGA so I am completely clueless about Haley’s cave. They all seem demented to me. I just want to be done with them all. Very dispiriting bunch of bananas.
Well wait TCinLA, we do want to say Liz Cheney is a “good Republican ,” don’t we - even as she assails Biden’s for his handling of Israel & Gaza?
One can say that Cheney is a principled person whose policy preferences are terrible.
Her admirable principles include, very notably, fidelity to democracy and the rule of law.
Of course, her fidelity for democracy is a highlight of her political career.
Well put. And in a democracy people are entitled to their opinions.
She didn't join the cult psychosis in the extreme way but she voted 98% with GOP. She's no friend to America, any more than is, Raffensberger or Kinzinger etc. They all have one Virtue of being anti-Trump but they have the same lousy values and policies as before.
During World War II, the US and Britain treated the Soviet Union as an ally, despite their repressive (and worse) governance, because the paramount need was to defeat Nazi Germany.
Similarly, we liberals need to join hands with principled Republicans to defeat the most dangerous domestic enemy – Donald Trump and Trumpism. The likes of Cheney, Raffensberger, and Kinzinger will not destroy the US even though many of their policy choices are awful, but we need each other in temporary unity to defeat the clear and present dangers – Trump, Trumpsters, and Trumpism.
Hi Michael--- "Principled Republicans" is almost an oxymoron, eh? There are a few who are aligned against Trump, though, and they have been really persistent and unflagging in spirit and ideas. About half or more of podcasts I listen to are run by ex-Repubs -- Lincoln Project, Bulwark, Enemies List, etc. All solid stuff until they go into some more mainstream GOP ideas-- I guess they haven't been totally cured yet!! But they are great allies and I will take them in this context. I saw Raffensperger on Meet the Press last weekend talking about voting security; he and another GOP from PA were on a panel with Jocelyn Benson from Michigan and a fellow Dem from AZ who was also quite strong. Brad was trying to make all kinds of claims of his unique accomplishments --- but still knocking Stacey Abrahms, and claiming that non-citizen voting is a real threat -- as they allegedly caught about 1600 making a try at it. First of all-- if you caught them before they voted then it is not really a problem, or if you cancel their vote then security worked-- bravo!! But also, he did not say for whom these people voted, nor did he give any data on the fake voters or in what way they were not qualified. I suppose we should just infer they are invading hordes from below the border or Muslim terrorists or some other GOP trope, but I wonder if he dare get into the specifics. After all, it was Trump who told his people to vote twice. And-- some cases of "dead voters" were found to be spouses who cast votes for Trump. So Brad gets his Boy Scout medal for standing firm in 2020, and he was great on the phone call with Trump, but I wonder how much is about his own arrogance as opposed to his integrity. But--- I will take it!! He certainly has a long rap sheet of offenses against voting equity in GA as I recall. But we will need people like him in a few months more so than ever. It was a very slim hold in 2020, and the pressure to corrupt the election will be greater this time. Ultimately, they will try to go for an election in the House if they can, and the concierge SCOTUS will uphold it. Well, we can hope for and advocate for the best!!
"Good Republican" is an oxymoron.
The photographs of the Appeal to Heaven flag being flown at Alito's vacation home, and being carried by many violent insurrectionists who stormed, broke into, and defaced the Capitol at the direction and urging of Donald Trump, to stop the certification of votes for Biden and overturn the 2020 election, demonstrate beyond questioning that Alito cannot possibly represent an unbiased vote on any case involving Donald Trump's trial on the subject of Jan 6. The fact that both he and the court offered no response about this second anti-democratic flag having been identified as being displayed at Alito's homes, speaks volumes. Alito will not resign. He will not recuse himself. He has been placed where he is by Leonard Leo of the Federalist Society and will not shirk his duties to serve the interests of plutocrats for whom democracy is an annoyance and inconvenience. Roberts will not rein him in. That leaves impeachment or court expansion to prevent the Supreme Court from functioning as a partisan organization. It has currently been captured by the actions of Leonard Leo and Mitch McConnell, and the massive financial support of plutocrats who have ploughed hundreds of $millions of dark money into the effort to lock down the White House, the Congress and the Supreme Court, a thorough minority take-over of government that only massive turn-out at the ballot box in November can defeat. If Trump is re-elected, Leo will no doubt engineer a switch-out of old conservatives for youthful ones who will create a Supreme Court that will remain out of touch with what most Americans want for decades.
In response to this latest desecration of the Supreme Court, I wrote a letter to Chief Justice Roberts yesterday. In it, I offered a suggestion that he call for both Alito and Thomas to retire, perhaps by offering to not pursue action against them. In so doing, the vacancies they'd create would allow President Biden to restore balance to the Court, thereby avoiding the long and arduous prospect of expanding it.
I realize that I probably have a better chance of winning the MegaMillions jackpot than seeing this come to fruition, but it felt good writing it. For anyone who's interested, Here's the letter: https://open.substack.com/pub/bobmorgan/p/dear-chief-justice-roberts
Well Bob, it’s a good effort. Maybe try to get your letter published in the Times as a guest editorial. Stay focused. Keep the messaging in their face.
Still, you did a good thing, Bob! It's such a disappointment that Roberts is so remiss by taking no responsible action on Alito or Thomas. Reading your post made me imagine for a moment what it would be like to have a more honest, non-partisan court. There would still be Kavanaugh and Gorsuch, but it would be a more even situation!
Kathleen, Your disappointment and that of the rest of us is because we let ourselves believe that Chief Justice Roberts was somehow different from those who have been more public in their rhetoric. To wit, Chief Justice Roberts has always been in on the game and now is joining the rest with his more mellow, but no less dangerous demeanor.
They are rotten to the core. It's a totally debased Court other than our three guardians.
Living in a bubble of privilege means you operate in a universe apart from the majority of people. It is not healthy.
You would certainly wield more influence if you won the Mega Millions jackpot! Good luck!
No doubt! I'd love to test your theory!
You could offer to buy Thomas and Alito out of their seats! I’d support the Medal of Freedom for that!
Bravo Bob!
Thanks Bob. I think your letter is extremely well done! I'd like to send it myself (with my signature) and encourage dozens of my contacts to do the same. Are you okay with that?
I forgot to say that I would credit you, a Substack writer, with having written the original.
Absolutely! I'm happy to allow anyone to copy it. Let me know if you get a response. Thanks!
How do you do an impeachment with a Republican Congress?
Unfortunately, I can't see an Alito impeachment happening until we at least get a Democratic majority in the House and, hopefully, hold onto (and add to, if possible) our Dem majority in the Senate. However, both Alito and Thomas need to be summarily booted out of the Court as soon as we can do so.
Technically he has not done anything that is impeachable unethical yes
You get rid of a Republican House and win some Senate seats. We have to keep working!
Yes, but between now & then? Dems need to make more news, make this a big scandal! Push Alito & Thomas to recuse at the very least.
At least one should try.
I agree!
Absolutely, it’s a problem. The other comments have covered this, I think. Push hard on Congressional races and turnout, turnout, turnout.
There are remedies that the Congress has in passing term limits and ethics rules and of course expanding the court. It all requires a healthy majority because very few if any Republicans who have waited years for the current situation to unfold will support it. The Republicans have weaponized the courts.
I doubt that passing term limits would apply to sitting jurists. It would take decades to reform the court that way. I'm not saying I'm not in favor of term limits, just that it is no fix for this court, for whom I doubt the limits would apply. Ethics rules could certainly apply. Would they have any retroactive effect for the egregious violations? I would hope they could stop Thomas and Alito from continuing to sit on cases they are connected to.
Other western nations have modernized their court systems with term limits, mandatory retirement age, nonpartisan panels to vet prospective jurists, rotating judges as well as expansion of the numbers of justices. In Canada 75 years and retire. In Germany there are 16 members. Ethics rules while important can be flaunted and any remedy for violation fraught with political infighting. We see how impeachment has worked out as a remedy.
My question would be over what period of time did those modernizations that place and how did the constitutions compare to ours, what laws required legislation action first, etc. I very much would like to see modernization. But I have year some pretty persuasive legal opinions that term limits and age limits could take at least a generation to apply, and considering how many youthful extremists we have, thanks to Trump, who might be exempted from the new regulations, it could take decades to shift the character of the court. Now expanding it could be done more swiftly if Democrats controlled Congress, but it also has its risks if it is not done in a way that prevents the next Republican president from also just adding more jurists. As I understand it, right now there is nothing that defines the number, and if the Democrats get to define it, and then fill all the slots, the Republicans will have a hissy fit.
And at the same time, they claim we Dems are weaponizing everything. It’s called gaslighting.
Beautifully said. One suggestion only: "...impeachment AND court expansion..."
Correct... No recusal, apology etc will happen.
Expanding the Court will not happen but what if it did? Sooner or later it would 9 to 4 or 13 to 6 in favor of the Fascists. The underlying process is rotten no matter how many. We need term limits and a different nomination process that is not so random and partisan. No more than one new nomination per president. So what if it falls to 8 or 7 in the meantime? There needs to be an ethics code with teeth - - where Alito and Thomas would be out on their ass. Thomas needs to be indicted and gone after for tax violations! The Chief Justice needs to have more power. Senate Judiciary needs more power. It needs a total overhaul.
Any of the multiple potential measures you mention would be helpful. - term limits, limit of number of justices one president can nominate, ethics code with accountability - at this anything at all would be a godsend (as opposed to the "God send" according to the Book of Leo (Leonard, that is)). What exactly could Roberts do if he were so inclined? Which he isn't - his concern about the courts and his reputation pales in comparison to the importance he places on producing decisions that follow the dictates of moral authoritarianism, laissez-faire capitalism, and law and order protection of the rights of property above all others, in all its most extreme form of libertarian cruelty, and whatever benefits the wealth class and the most extreme forms of minority Christianity - think Middle Ages. Peter Irons' book "A People's History of the Supreme Court" is one horrible decision after another. The decisions on the topic of race, including over a century of iimmigration and citizenship decisions driven by rank racism (Ian Haney Lopez' book White By Law" is an eye-opener on this), is a particularly disturbing subset. And it's still happening - the refusal to rein in Republican gerrymandering that destroys one-person, one-vote. It's disgusting, really.
Book of Leo!!! Tragic.... The SCOTUS has made good decisions over the decades-- even this one on rare occasion -- but I think they do so in order to drop bombs on their real agenda items. This particular court is doing its unlevel best to strip away rights as well as protect White Christianity, corporatism and bigotry. It's breathtaking in its arrogance and sweep. They are trying to seed the ground for autocracy. They are making the immoral legal, and when they start to make the illegal legal, then we are into unbridled Fascism. If Trump wins or is installed Memorial Day 2025 will see a very different country than we even have now. When the feckless Roberts retires look for Kavanaugh to succeed him, depending on the President. Thanks for book leads too!!
I wonder why it took so long for the stories about Alito and the insurrectionist flags to emerge.
You always strike the right balance, Robert, to help us see the truth of what is happening. I'm particularly comforted by your assessment of the grifter and his small band of supporters.
Throughout this whole mess, it has concerned me a lot about how the American flag has been used as a pawn to convince a bystander that those flying/waving it are the true patriots. If you choose to fly the pine tree flag or some other symbol of rebellion, please leave the American flag out of it. In my opinion, you can't have both.
Yes.I totally agree with you.On my street in Ohio the American flag of stars and stripes is being flown in tandem with a Trump 2024 flag which to me is a blasphemy of sorts.One flag represents freedom for all and the other flag will take away many of these freedoms.It makes me uneasy and sad to walk by these flags every day.
There are a couple of the same that I drive past almost daily along a busy main road where I live (suburb of Charleston SC), a ginormous American flag and the most recent of the T* flag - one house has been cycling through the election year versions since the start. One house started with the upside down flag when the whole Alito thing hit the news. 😐 It's the various 'patriot/eagle/AR' combos and other demeaning decals and stickers on the pretentious lifted trucks that are like Palmetto bugs all over the roads here that can really bother me, especially when I am staring at one I'm behind in traffic. Way to threaten your fellow citizens, 'patriot'! 😞
I bet these flag wavers have no idea about what they are really doing.
As 'having an idea' requires a certain IQ level you probably have a point. But those behind the MAGA movement, ideologically and financially, know exactly what they are doing. Exactly!
I love this: “😐 It's the various 'patriot/eagle/AR' combos and other demeaning decals and stickers on the pretentious lifted trucks that are like Palmetto bugs all over the roads here that can really bother me,….” I recognize those trucks here in Colorado. Intimidating nonsense.
I wasn't sure how widespread the 'MAGA lifted truck' crowd extended outside the region I'm in, but it makes sense they're pretty much everywhere in the Western states as well. I lived in Montana for a handful of years back in the 90's and it tracks from what I saw even back then, although maybe not as many 'vanity' trucks vs actual ranch trucks used for the purpose they were built.
In the west truckers and others are given too much mucho in there coffee.
😆
I know exactly how you feel. The flag belongs to all Americans and it is a beautiful symbol of liberty for all. We cannot allow extremists co-opt it.
Remember all that fuss about wearing a flag pin?? It very much puts me in mind of "wolf in sheep's clothing " except I think many of those people only see the superficial aspects, helped along by Faux Faul News performative outrage.
I know a guy who always wore a lapel pin of an organization that supported service members and veterans in some way (no doubt, very conservative, as was the guy. Bushie in the day, now a trumper). He would humble brag about his support, yet he never served in the military. When it came time for his 2 sons to go to college, neither applied to a service academy. I’m sure today he considers himself the ultimate “patriot”, whatever that word now means.
It is a laugh that there were more lawyers and GOP politicians with, evidently, free time on their hands, that there were MAGA supporters from the Hoi polloi. Evidently Ohio voters don't mind it if their standard bearer, JD Vance, flip flop on his adamant support for Trump and then his subsequent groveling for the VP slot by venturing up to Manhattan to support a man successfully convicted of rape. RAPE! Where in heaven's name are there basic standards of decency?
In the toilet.
And yet, not for all of us. I'm hoping fervently that the garish, boorish clown is sent back to Florida to wallow in pity and grievance with a few more lawsuits for despicable and unpatriotic behavior and speechifying still to be reckoned with. And though my sympathy will be unappreciated, I do nonetheless feel sorry for those whose marriage and/or livelihood depend on serving such a selfish creature.
Re Alito. DOJ must step up, File emergency motions in the immunity cases. File affidavits re bias. Ask for an emergency evidentiary hearing.
Re bribery and perjury, take Leo and Harlan Crow to a grand jury.
Interesting they have tried to serve Leo and he has so far not responded and the Republicans have blocked every attempt to hold him in contempt
He can't duck a grand jury subpoena.
It seems like the crazy gets exponentially larger every day. It’s like somebody using a lawnmower or a leaf blower ( this should be outlawed with AK 15’s) when you are asleep with your window is open. Time to shut the window from this annoying noice of disinformation.
The point of our Senators asleep at the wheel here is critical. The Republicans drown the media with their continued drone lies. Time for our legislators to step up! Thanks Robert!
You know how the snake that is dying thrashes wilder and wilder and more dangerously? I've always thought that's what would be happening as we approach the election. Hold onto your hats, your principles and work on getting out the vote! Thanks as always!
Trump'll burn himself out before the election - maybe even before the GOP nomination.
Narcissistic Collapse cannot come soon enough.
Hope so.
I'm as old as he is and in much better shape than he is and I cannot imagine a life filled with such constant hatred and venom, an unhealthy diet, drugged to the max, and up all night attacking others. I would have keeled over long ago. Why doesn't he?
David, you have been smoking some of the good stuff. 🤓🤪🙃
In fact, I agree with Robert Reich (https://robertreich.substack.com/p/alitos-second-flag-is-even-worse):
Alito must be impeached.
Here's my message to Congressman Paul Tonko (which I sent by forwarding Robert Reich's newsletter):
I agree with Robert Reich (see his substack newsletter, below).
Justice Alito should be impeached.
Even if an impeachment does not pass the House, introducing articles of impeachment would send a strong message and encourage law-abiding citizens.
Please support bringing articles of impeachment against Samuel Alito. Dan Goldman should have a strong hand in this effort.
When Robert Reich wrote about the defendant's (oh, how I am longing to be able to write 'felon' soon) latest foray into Nazi Land, one reader left the comment: "The only Reich I do like to see in Washington is Robert." Priceless!
It suddenly occurred to me that our nation suffers of a great illness but that to allow it to heal I must absolutely stop worrying, speculating about what will happen in Nov, biting my nails, spending sleepless nights, talking incessantly about my fears. Do I deeply believe in our nation’s potential, its strength, in the symbolism of the Statue of Liberty? Yes!! Yes!!! Then let me fully embody these beliefs in every action I take and every word I speak. That must be my contribution to helping our country heal. And since that type of healing never occurs in a vacuum when I am healed I will not be healed alone. Many others will be too.
As Simon Rosenberg puts it - Do More, Worry Less.
Carefully choose the news media brand that tells the truth w/o an agenda, and be watchful (no pun intended here)of your T.V. time. Take a walk in the woods and talk to the trees, bears, deer, raccoons and squirrels . Broadcast journalism is a "Twilight Zone" experience of an unhealthy surreal reality.
Well, I still favor PBS News Hour & Frontline. Frontline, in particular, is awesome.
Every one of us should contact her 2 US Senators, his Representative and the Speaker of the House to demand a House impeachment of Alito and Thomas and a Senate investigation. They must be held to account for their corrupt and unethical conduct. Justice Roberts should also be called to testify by the Senate to explain the absence of ethical rules that all Federal judges are required to follow except Supreme Court Justices . If he fails to testify he deserves the same fate as Messrs Navarro and Bannon who were sentenced to jail for contempt of Congress.
None of the justices are resigning. Never going to happen. And Biden has said many times, he doesn’t support expanding the court. I hope that changes with a second term, but I’m not holding my breath. Our country is on the brink of fascism and I’m PETRIFIED.
I share your fears that another tRump term is going to be like a Nazi takeover. The idea of outlawing contraception is Stone Age. The MAGAs want women at home caring for infants they have no means of supporting . Child care is not available or affordable for these women so they can hold a job in order to support this family, but if they get pregnant again (because of a man) things will get even worse for the rest of the family. Sounds absolutely heavenly.
Please remind me why Biden does not want to expand the court. I would appreciate it.
My position (don’t know about Biden) is that it is difficult to do. A lot of political capital would need to be expended and the Ds don’t have the necessary firepower. Read the history of FDR’s attempt to expand the Court and why it failed. Not that it cannot be done but there are other measures that can be achieved to modernize our Court system.
There is precedence. There’s no requirement that it’s nine people. It should be 13 to match the number of districts. A good starting point would be to shut down judge shopping.
Thanks. Well, if they could just get started by ousting the Terrible Trio, that would certainly be a great start!
An interesting snippet from this morning's Washington Post offers a motivation for Durbin's puzzling reluctance to hold hearings on the Supreme Court.
"Durbin’s efforts to hold the Supreme Court accountable are potentially in tension with his efforts to confirm as many judges as possible, for which he needs Republican cooperation. The Senate is currently beating Trump’s record-breaking judicial confirmation pace, confirming Biden’s 200th and 201st judicial nominee on Wednesday."
I appreciate your mentioning this but I think that is just an “off ramp” for Durbin. He needs to grow a spine and lead by example.
Or better even: abolish the crazy system of seniority when naming committee chairs. Senator Whitehouse would be a great chairman of the Judiciary Committee.
Durbin is Deputy Majority Leader, #2 behind Senator Schumer.
Yes, he is. Actually the longest serving democratic whip, since 2005. And he is 79 years old.
I agree.
Where is the American Bar Association???? Industry self-regulation does not work and that applies to attorneys as well. Alito should never have been given a pass by the ABA. (Even commentators on judicial writing remind us of that level of deliberate deception.) While the majorities of Democrats and Biden with their Democratic sweep because each one of us is working hard to achieve the registration and turnout we need, they should create a rotating, independent commission of Senior Judges and academics to review all Supreme Court and Appellate Court nominees. I guess Aileen Cannon reminds us that partisanship in the judicial branch is, simply, a recipe for the loss of democracy, not to mention the trail of damage along the way.
I have had it with the Alito flags, the Guiliani circus and coffee sales, the slow walking of Judge Cannon, and the MTG and Trump bullshit about the FBI trying to assassinate Trump when they raided Mara Lago. I am tired of doing nothing and letting all this behavior go without some type responsive actions. Biden’s speeches while excellent and not cutting it and the media response is pathetic and until Trump realized the Judge would really throw him in jail and would not tolerate his behavior he shut up. I’m. not a willing to tolerate the behavior of these Republicans and like the women in the rain last night marching in front of Alito’s house in protest in New Jersey we need to have our voices heard not for the Republicans but for normal voters who need to hear that many other people are no longer willing to tolerate this behavior. Until the Republicans supporting the MAGA platform and rhetoric feel the push back and outrage it will continue. We have no alternatives.
Dear Stephen, i hear you! And i hope you will use your outrage to work electorally…that is the power we have. Write postcards, phonebank, textbank, canvass, register voters. Etc. And…we can pressure Biden to expand the court when we reelect him. Turn that outrage into action!
With the exception of what's happening with RFK and Joe Biden in the polls, this stuff is getting very scary. The Aryans are coming to get the rest of us.