Let’s play this out, shall we…
Today, President Obama appointed Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court of the United States (#SCOTUSnom). Now, the Republican majority has said that they aren’t even going to consider this nominee because of a hypothetical situation discussed on the Senate floor by then Senator Joe Biden (who is now the Vice President). The Republican majority is calling this “The Biden Rule” to try and rally support for their cause.
As Mitch McConnell said:
“The American people may well elect a president who decides to nominate Judge Garland for Senate consideration. The next president may also nominate someone very different. Either way, our view is this: Give the people a voice in the filling of this vacancy.”
So, they want the people to decide. We did decide when we reelected President Obama. We did decide when we elected the members of the current House and Senate. To say that they aren’t even going to consider this appointment is nothing short of a dereliction of duty. The members of the House and Senate were elected by us. If they won’t uphold their duties, as defined by the U.S. Constitution, then they should be held accountable. They should be impeached and removed from the highchairs they were elected to.
So here’s the rub, folks. The Republicans want the next SCOTUS appointment to be made by the next President, whomever that may be. Essentially, they are banking on a YUGE “if” at a time when Donald Trump is the Republican party’s front-runner for the RNC’s Presidential nomination. Let’s say that the next election is Hillary Clinton vs Donald Trump, and Trump loses in a landslide because nobody wants to elect the village idiot to the highest office in the country.
The irony here is, in their failed attempt to see if the Presidential election goes their way, the Republican-controlled Senate faces their next dilemma: It is now #Hillary’s turn to appoint the next member of SCOTUS. That nominee could very well be…wait for it…former President Barack Obama.
Remember, before entering politics, Barack Obama was an accomplished attorney. He graduated from Columbia University and Harvard Law School, and he taught Constitutional Law. And, since SCOTUS often has to rule on the Constitutionality of lower court rulings, who better to be on the Supreme Court of the United States?
The Republicans are playing chicken in an election year. This won’t end well for them.