FINALLY SOME GONADS: Republicans Pull the Trigger on Nuke Option #SCOTUS

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Finally, the Republicans dig deep for much needed testicular fortitude. The Democrats did it without so much as an iota of hesitation.

Better they did it on Gorsuch and not the next Supreme Court nomination where the real fight will be.

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  • New rule bars minority from blocking Supreme Court nominees
  • GOP-led change clears way for Gorsuch confirmation Friday

Senate Republicans Force Historic Rule Change to Advance Gorsuch

by Laura Litvan, Bloomberg, April 6, 2017:

Senate Republicans ignited the “nuclear option” to allow confirmation of President Donald Trump’s U.S. Supreme Court nominee and bar Democrats from blocking future picks, a dramatic rule change that could deepen partisan divisions and put more ideologically extreme justices on the court.

The 52-48 party-line vote called for by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Thursday will let the Senate confirm Neil Gorsuch on Friday to take a court seat that Republicans refused to let President Barack Obama fill during his last year in office.

The rule change means Gorsuch and all future Supreme Court nominees can be confirmed with a simple majority vote and will no longer face a 60-vote hurdle.

McConnell said Democrats’ move to filibuster Gorsuch is part of a “much larger story” in which the left is trying to politicize the courts and confirmations.

“It’s a fight they have waged for decades with a singular aim, securing raw power no matter the cost to the country or the institution,” McConnell of Kentucky said on the Senate floor. “It underlies why this threatened filibuster cannot be allowed to succeed.”

QuickTake: Why the Senate is Ready to Chip Away at Filibuster

Democrats said the power grab was made by the Republicans when they denied a hearing to Obama’s nominee last year. In addition, Gorsuch didn’t show himself to be a mainstream judge during his confirmation hearing at the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said.

“Far from being the kind of mainstream candidate for the Supreme Court that could earn 60 votes, he may very well turn out to be one of the most conservative justices on the bench,” said Schumer of New York.

“The nuclear option means the end of a long history of consensus” on high court nominees, he said. The 60-vote requirement acts as a “guardrail” against judicial extremism, Schumer said.

Unanimous Support

Gorsuch, 49, has a decade of federal appeals court experience and unanimous support among Senate Republicans who say his qualifications will make him a strong addition to the court for decades to come.

Democratic critics say putting him on the court will produce more decisions favoring corporations over working-class Americans. Many remain embittered about the GOP’s refusal last year to consider Obama’s choice of Judge Merrick Garland for the vacancy created by the February 2016 death of Justice Antonin Scalia.

Republicans insisted they were forced to make the change because Democrats were ignoring a tradition against using a filibuster to block high court nominees. McConnell and other Republicans noted that both justices confirmed under Obama, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, had bipartisan support and went straight to a final vote.

Forty-four Democrats initially voted Thursday to block Gorsuch’s nomination by denying the 60 votes needed to move it forward. Four Democrats voted with the GOP to advance the nomination — Michael Bennet of Colorado, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Joe Donnelly of Indiana.

Simple Majority

Republicans responded with the “nuclear option” that allows Senate rules to be revised with a simple majority vote, rather than the 67 typically required. McConnell did this by asserting to the presiding officer that only a majority should be needed to confirm Supreme Court nominees.

Republicans then voted to overturn the 60-vote requirement for Supreme Court nominees. The Senate followed with a 55-45 procedural vote to set up Friday’s final confirmation.

Republican Senator John McCain had tried to forge a bipartisan deal to avert the rule change but gave up early this week after Democrats said they had enough votes to block Gorsuch.

In 2013, a Democratic-led Senate under Majority Leader Harry Reid voted to end filibusters of executive-branch and lower-court nominees following Republican obstruction of Obama’s choices. That eased approval of Trump’s cabinet this year, with key posts including the secretaries of Treasury, Education, Health and Human Services and the attorney general winning confirmation with 53 or fewer votes.

Some lawmakers have said they fear Republicans will later change the rules to eliminate minority-party filibusters of legislation — a longstanding rule intended to force Republicans and Democrats to compromise — although McConnell said this week he won’t do that.

Even Republicans who back the new rule warn that easing hurdles for Supreme Court nominees will cause the court and Congress to become more partisan. McCain and Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina say presidents could choose nominees with more extreme views because they wouldn’t need bipartisan support for confirmation.

“Now that we are entering into an era where a simple majority decides all judicial nominations, we will see more and more nominees from the extremes of both the left and the right,” McCain said on the Senate floor Wednesday. “I do not see how that will ensure a fair and impartial judiciary. In fact, I think the opposite will be true and Americans will no longer be confident of equal protection under the law.”

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karolewsd018
karolewsd018
6 years ago

The silent majority yelled on November 8, 2016, for several reasons.

-The border is dangerous.

-Our cities are collapsing (Detroit, Baltimore, Philadelphia, St. Louis)

-Too many Americans are broke.

-Affordable healthcare is expensive. Mine is $650/month now. My car insurance is still $25 per month (from Insurance Panda), but who knows what Obama’s plans for that are?

-And Hillary is corrupt.

No one I know voted to oppress anyone, regardless of skin tone or sexual preference.

There is a clear path for all those illegally here to become legal citizens, and therefore be free from the anxiety of deportation. If you’re appalled or upset I understand, I was in your shoes the last eight years.

May the One true God bless America!

We won! Where's the prize?
We won! Where's the prize?
6 years ago
Reply to  karolewsd018

You forgot “Supreme Court”. That was a major reason for voting Trump.
Lots more of course such as right to keep and bear arms, need extreme vetting (not really, what we NEED is no immigration), too many regulations, IRS being weaponized against citizens for political reasons, etc…..

Fern
Fern
6 years ago

The indane leftist POS Chuckie (woodchuck) Schumer did not back down on HIS filibuster. Good. Nuke the demoncats real good like. Shove Gorsuch down their throats!

Don Vito
Don Vito
6 years ago
Reply to  Fern

LoL
Couldn’t agree more.

Jennifer McDavies
Jennifer McDavies
6 years ago
Reply to  Fern

Yep, woodchuck is the ringleader. Thanks NY for your contribution to the Senate.

Nefarious420D
Nefarious420
6 years ago

Now if only we could abolish the democratic party.

Brains are back in style!
Brains are back in style!
6 years ago
Reply to  Nefarious420

If people had brains we could abolish them at the ballot box.

tony curti
tony curti
6 years ago

The degree of violence and mayhem that the paid and trained liberal agitators engage in is parallel to just how much confidence they have that they will be allowed to do so without any interference/opposition. One of these days, I think they will end up killing some Trump supporter – probably inadvertently. IT will be interesting to see if there will be any response to that besides tweets and farfel.

Rocinante44
Rocinante44
6 years ago
Reply to  Nefarious420

it won’t help if you don’t abolish the dems. really, have you seen a bigger moron than paul ryan?

Nefarious420D
Nefarious420
6 years ago
Reply to  Rocinante44

Both parties are corrupted by special interests, bought and paid for. Until we change the supreme court ruling that Corporations are People too, our government and us by proxy are screwed.

tony curti
tony curti
6 years ago
Reply to  Nefarious420

YUP………..allowing unrestricted contributions is what has all but put this out of reach for the population at large. I don’t know how this changes peacefully- it will be a major miracle if it does.

Drew the Infidel
Drew the Infidel
6 years ago
Reply to  Nefarious420

The way they are grinding themselves into the dirt, they don’t need our help.

Jennifer McDavies
Jennifer McDavies
6 years ago

It’s about time McConnell and his gang of anti-Trumpers have actually begun to fight the evil Demis. Maybe he learned a trick or two from the demonic duo, Harry Reed and Chuck Schumer.

I hope judge Gorsuch remembers this….

tony curti
tony curti
6 years ago

MCConnell, McCain and Ryan all need to have their balls frosted and leave. McConnell has presided over a depression in Kentucky’s coal mining industry and still is in office. Amazing!

Ryan and McCain are on Soros’ payroll (with other RINO’s) 6 Top Republi-CONS on radical left George Soro’s payroll:

GUESS WHO’S BEING PAID TO STOP TRUMP?
Senator John McCain, Paul Ryan, and Marco Rubio all received generous funding from George Soros in 2016, and McCain’s financial association with the globalist billionaire dates back to at least 2001, according to a new report by OpenSecrets. org.
The non-profit, non-partisan research group based in Washington, D.C., that tracks the effects of money and lobbying on elections and public policy, revealed that while George Soros is responsible for funding Democrats and progressive causes, he has also bankrolled Senator John McCain and a small but select group of other Republicans.
Unsurprisingly, all of the names revealed to receive funding from George Soros have a track record of opposition to President Trump.
Joining Sen. John McCain, House Speaker Paul Ryan and Marco Rubio on the Soros payroll-of-shame are fellow Republicans John Kasich, Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Carlos Curbelo (R-FL).
As Senator McCain continues attacking the policies of President Trump, his long-standing, but little-known association with globalist billionaire George Soros is receiving new attention among his Republican critics.
It has been revealed that McCain has been sucking on the Soros tit for over 15 years.
In 2001, McCain founded the Alexandria, Va. – based Reform Institute as a vehicle to receive funding from George Soros’ Open Society Institute and Teresa Heinz Kerry’s Tides Foundation and several other prominent non-profit organizations. (McCain – a TRAITOR on the take for how many years now?!)
McCain used the institute to promote his political agenda and provide remuneration to staff and key campaign operatives between elections.

Ebayer
Ebayer
6 years ago

Sorry Chuckie. You tried your best, you POS.

TDD
TD
6 years ago
Reply to  Ebayer

I use to respect Chuck Shumer. I thought he was moderate.
He just panders to idiots like Keith Ellison.
Where was Shumer’s passion when obama introduced the Iran deal and when he back-stabbed Israel?

Abject blithering idiots!
Abject blithering idiots!
6 years ago

Maybe after Gorsuch is confirmed the media and dems will shut up about him. It’s getting old.
Maybe the Rs had best change the rules back before the next election if it looks like they may lose the votes to stop the dems from doing the same thing?
I’ve never seen such an inept bunch of idiots as Congress in my life. Can’t even pass a bill allowing insurers to offer any health insurance policy they want, allow us to buy across state lines, repeal the individual mandate, but leave all the rest of Ocare as it was. They’re abject blithering idiots. Sickening.

tony curti
tony curti
6 years ago

IT’s going to be interesting to see how many conservative justices end up dead before the end of their tenure……ala Seth Rich, MAry Mahoney, and literally scores of others.

VLParker
VLParker
6 years ago

It’s time for Republicans to throw away their pussy hats once and for all.

Rocinante44
Rocinante44
6 years ago
Reply to  VLParker

those aren’t hats. if you pull on them, you’ll find they’re part of their body

tony curti
tony curti
6 years ago
Reply to  Rocinante44

Those are the RINO’s, the Transgenders of the political world….wouldn’t be surprised if their districts really elected their wives…

TDD
TD
6 years ago
Reply to  VLParker

Next time, don’t even do hearings, just pull the trigger and let the Democrats burn!
What do they do for society? do they protect it? Democrats are a waste of space!

Entry Reqrd
Entry Reqrd
6 years ago

Now the senate should sit the rest of the nominees 12 at a time for the rest of the Federal Judicial Vacancies and get the benches filled.

Very important
Very important
6 years ago

See this –

Christian Action Network – The United States Department of Education has introduced an Islamic indoctrination program for the public schools, called Access Islam
Lesson plans include facts such as that Muslims pray five times a day and what the First Amendment says about religion

THIS IS HOW IMPORTANT THE FIRST AMENDMENT IS FOR MUSLIMS! It is so damn important, that they give it the same value as their own islamic tenets! They know that first amendment grants their islam immunity. Our first amendment is fking our civilization and helping muslims prevail over us.

The saddest part? – Many of us will still defend it. And this is how you know we are doomed. Sigh….

tony curti
tony curti
6 years ago
Reply to  Very important

Islamics won’t extend that first amendment to the rest of the country if they ever achieve a political plurality (with their population growth rates and unfettered/unvetted immigration they just might). Then they’ll use sharia to deny the constitution and the bill of rights. Allowing a catch-22 to upstage your culture is STUPID.

Rocinante44
Rocinante44
6 years ago

be very careful here. this guy is trojan horse, and i believe the dems have pulled off a great coup. they got one of their loyal libs on the bench, and got the rules changed to pack the court whenever they seize the senate back. this gorsuch guy is a rich kid who never worked a day in his life, has been thoroughly indoctrinated at harvard and oxford, has a foreign wife, chooses to live in boulder surrounded by america-hating democrat neighbors, and attends a “church” where the name of Christ is never uttered and where the Bible is thought to be a fairy tale. i guarantee you he is the next anthony kennedy, a kook who is a guaranteed democrat vote on any big decision. he will be the biggest mistake since eisenhower put earl warren on the court

Jackie Puppet
Jackie Puppet
6 years ago

The GOP Senate leadership better not take for granted, their current majority status. With RINOs like McCain & his girlfriend Lindsay Graham, they might one day decide to change the letter after their names. If Trump has too difficult a time pursuing his agenda, the impotent & ineffective GOP will get the blame at the ballot box in 2018, not Trump – the House can absorb a loss of seats, the Senate cannot.

tony curti
tony curti
6 years ago
Reply to  Jackie Puppet

The electorate may decide to replace RINO’s with candidates more ideologically in line with Trump. IT would be nice if McCain had to step down for age-related reasons, but somehow I think the dem’s and other soros funded RINO’s would protect him if he was brain dead on a respirator. One of his campaign manager’s was arrested for pedophilia; be interesting to see if he’s involved as well.

Dave Mc
Dave Mc
6 years ago

I’m pleased. The dems should no longer feel the need to show up at all, except to observe how well governing can be accomplished when the roadblocks are removed. By their stupidity they’ve rendered themselves more obsolete in one swoop than the decimation they’ve suffered at the State and National levels over the last 30 years.

We’ve just witnessed a self-extinction event.

Drew the Infidel
Drew the Infidel
6 years ago

Hypocrisy being the commiecrats’ stock in trade, this nuclear option was one former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid pulled just a few short years ago to allow Obhammud to pack the lower courts. OK for me but not for thee?

Dave Falanga
Dave Falanga
6 years ago

Republicans (McCain and others) are trying to figure out which rest room to use. Democrats are for sanctuary cities and are anti Americans.

Black Opal
Black Opal
6 years ago

The rule change will be very handy when the decent people get control of Congress back in two years. You people can’t help shooting yourselves in the foot, can you? ?

dad1927
dad1927
6 years ago

To fix the obama judges we needed this…comment image

Geppetto
Geppetto
6 years ago

This is largely the result of the fact that Republicans are dedicated to so called bi-partisanship and tend to roll over and “make nice” while the “democrats,” being largely devoid of principle and having zero interest in bi-partisanship, have become dedicated and expert at taking advantage of these well intentioned but ill equipped individuals who, presumably, dedicate themselves to public service. While this rule change will get Neil Gorsuch confirmed, undoubtedly a good thing, it will likely end in disaster when the “democrats” are once again the majority.

The majority of conservatives and republicans believe in a constitutional republic, federalism, capitalism, personal responsibility and freedom, free markets, etc. and vote for those who express allegiance and a dedication to conservative principles but, far too often, those GOP nominees who are elected tend to fold under the constant barrage of withering, vitriolic, baseless accusations that spew from the mendacious mouths of the progressive left, the modern “democrat” and their carefully constructed army of dedicated and well financed protagonists, If this remains as the modern version of the democratic party. Armed with this much heralded, republican created version of the so called “nuclear option,” America need be very concerned about what the future holds. For certain, it will not be the country envisioned by the Founding Fathers.

But what other option exists? It can only be hoped that this crop of obstructionists, the so called “democrats” continue to extend their losing streak in the 2018 elections. Then should begin the generational dismantling of that “carefully constructed army” referred to above starting with the progressive, rat infested, radically supported academia who’ve been successfully indoctrinating those now in the forefront of the progressive assault on America for decades.

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