RIP Antonin Scalia

It isn't precedent. The GOP has no intention of ever living up to this practice if it gets the White House back.

 

If the GOP does follow through on this and if a GOP president does find himself in the same situation, it'll be hysterical to hear them rationalize it.

 

It always amuses me when people react with mortified indignance when politicians act differently in identical situations depending on which party is in power.

 

Kind of like the debates regarding which side favors using the filibuster.

 

I'm sure their outlook will lighten up considerably.

 

The GOPers position that the next justice should be put forth by the new president is wholly without merit. The president, then in office, is empowered to make the appointment. The president's power does not only last for the first 3 years of his/her term, its for the duration of the term.

That's all that's needed to be said.

I only hope that people will penalize those who will hold the Supreme Court hostage for the next 11 mos. because that's simply wrong. Sorry that Justice Scalia passed at this point in time, really I am, but you cannot hold a vacancy for the next 14 mos. or so. The Senate has a constitutional duty to either confirm or reject based on merits of the nominee's credentials, that's it.

 

Can't help but notice the only red lines in that graph are Republican nominees. From listening the last two days you'd think Democrats let Republican nominees sail through with no resistance. Apparently Democrats are fucking lying hypocrites.

 

There are two people on that list who haven't been confirmed, one of whom (Miers) is easily the biggest joke of a nominee in the history of the process.

So ... there's Bork.

ETA: Miers' replacement, the plainly partisan but nonetheless highly qualified Alito, sailed through the confirmation process.

 

Why you gotta ruin another of his ill-conceived gotcha! moments?

 

I keep hearing the Republicans say that Obama should not be allowed to appoint a Supreme because he's a lame duck. The lame duck period is the time between the election and the inauguration of the President-Elect. This is February of the fourth year of Obama's second term. It is his Constitutional duty to send up a nominee. They can refuse to hold a hearing or vote the nomination down, but it's nonsense to say that he should not put someone up for the job. We all know that if the shoe was on the other foot the Republicans would tell the Dems to go piss up a rope.

Of course, if the shoe was on the other foot, the Democrats would be desperately trying to find a rationale for refusing the R's candidate. Politics.

 

If Obama is a lame duck then all of the Senators who are up this year should stand aside as well. (Psst, 24 Republicans are up this year, 10 Dems - which would leave 34 Ds, 30 Rs left to vote and 2 Is I(who caucus with D.)