Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Stamping your little feets and demanding that they see how important you are? Not working anymore.

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

The fundamental promise of conservatism all over the world is a return to an idealized past that never existed.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

If ‘weird’ was the finish line, they ran through the tape and kept running.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires.

… riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

Books are my comfort food!

You know it’s bad when the Project 2025 people have to create training videos on “How To Be Normal”.

Roe is not about choice. It is about freedom.

Not all heroes wear capes.

Peak wingnut was a lie.

Giving up is unforgivable.

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

Second rate reporter says what?

Republicans don’t lie to be believed, they lie to be repeated.

We’re watching the self-immolation of the leading world power on a level unprecedented in human history.

People are complicated. Love is not.

Polls are now a reliable indicator of what corporate Republicans want us to think.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

There are some who say that there are too many strawmen arguments on this blog.

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

You are either for trump or for democracy. Pick one.

The rest of the comments were smacking Boebert like she was a piñata.

You are here: Home / Absent Friends / RBG RIP

RBG RIP

by | 213 Comments

This post is in: 

Had to bump this because Biden needs our help right now….

Holy fucking shit.

She was one of the great ones.

The next two months are going to be a total shitshow. Biden might need our help right now. Not normally a huge fan of raising money for billion dollar campaigns but raising lot for Joe this weekend could be a “storyline” that helps Democrats. I threw up in myself typing that but that’s how it goes sometimes.

Joe Biden

Goal Thermometer

Reader Interactions

213Comments

  7. 7.

    Marcopolo

    Rest in Power RBG. You were one of the all-time greats. Totally right about how this will become a shit show between now and the election but I’ll put off worrying about that for now while I drink a toast and think about all the great stuff she did in her life.

  9. 9.

    Another Scott

    Oh no. :-( She was one of the best we’ve had. RIP.

    It is yet another indication of how important this election is. We have to vote the monsters out. And we can do it if we turn out.

    Forward!!

    [eta:] I don’t see anything on https://twitter.com/amymcgrathky yet.  I hope she and her team think carefully and well about how they confront Moscow Mitch about it.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  10. 10.

    Leto

    Fuck Mitch McConnell. Saying that right now because we already know that fucking piece of shit will be advocating some 20 year old douche bro to the court. Just, fucking fuck fuck fuck.

  11. 11.

    Sab

    Life very well lived. And DO NOT say she should have quit so that McConnell could have stonwalled a replacement.

    She loved the law. She never even learned how to cook because she was so busy lawyering.

  14. 14.

    Mary G

    In other awful news from the LA Times:

    The death toll from California’s unprecedented 2020 firestorms rose to 26 after officials announced the death of a firefighter battling the El Dorado fire in San Bernardino County, a blaze sparked by a pyrotechnics from a gender-reveal party.

    Few details were immediately available about the death Thursday, and the firefighter’s name had not been released. On Friday, residents in the San Bernardino Mountains area lined the highway in respect as the fallen firefighter was escorted from the fire zone.

  16. 16.

    JoyceH

    What’s sad is that she won’t get a traditional mourning period because people will be too busy manning the battlements to stop a rush nomination to replace her. Hopefully a few Republicans who are up for reelection will have the sense to speak a few words to McConnell to slow down the runaway train. And I’d bet any amount of money that it won’t be a week before Trump makes some comment about it, publicly or on Twitter, that will be nothing short of a gloat.

  18. 18.

    Misterpuff

    Notorious RIP.

    Start the drumbeat now. No noms until the new term. Turtle Rules.

    And if you break your own rule (and you know he will) Court Packing is on the agenda.

    For RGB and America!

  19. 19.

    Another Scott

    Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) says it would be a “double standard” to fill a Supreme Court vacancy before 2021 & “would not support it.”

    — Alex Bolton (@alexanderbolton) August 3, 2020

    Senators need to speak up and cut off Moscow Mich’s machinations before they start.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  20. 20.

    OGLiberal

    There ain’t no candy coating this.  Even if Joe wins – and he probably will! – we are fucked.  Just fucked.  I’m sure you all will beat the shit out of me for being a Debbie downer and/or a troll but we’re fucked.  If any asshole leaning Dem voter is still thinking about staying home in November or voting for some Green Party asshole because reasons needs to go fuck themselves…because those fucking racist evangelical lunatics will be out in even larger numbers.  Ain’t no fucking way we don’t get some 42 year-old lunatic on the court before the election.  This is a fucking nightmare.

  21. 21.

    cheap jim

    Well, this is going to be a hellish several months. Arrogant justice, she should have resigned when she had a good chance. Now we’ll get Justice Kavanaugh #3.

  23. 23.

    debbie

    This is an incalculable loss, for women and for democracy. I don’t think I have the stomach to watch McConnell rush through the candidate who will end Roe v. Wade.

  25. 25.

    JML

    Vote Biden or face a permanent pro-fascist majority on the bench.

    If you like freedom and equality, vote these monsters out.

    If you like having the ability to vote these monsters out, vote Blue.

  28. 28.

    BettyPageisaBlonde

    As a proud trans woman this news absolutely terrifies me. TERRIFIES ME. I transitioned YEARS ago and usually have a suit of fucking vibranium to protect me but this got through and now I’m just scared.

    Let’s make it so fucking toxic for those Republican senators who’ll be tempted to follow fucknut Mitch in pushing a new Justice through. TOXIC. It’s that important.

    Absolutely heartbroken and no-lie terrified. This country is so fucked.

  34. 34.

    jonas

    Just fuck to the millionth power. *Of course* McConnell will be racing to confirm Assoc Justice Ted Cruz by the end of the weekend despite it being two months from an election this time, because Fucking Mitch McConnell.

  36. 36.

    Richard Guhl

    Every GOP Senator up for reelection needs to be hammered every day demanding that there be no vote on a nomination. Make them squirm about the hypocrisy. Make them think twice about going down this path.

  37. 37.

    Brachiator

    @OGLiberal:

    There ain’t no candy coating this.  Even if Joe wins – and he probably will! – we are fucked.  Just fucked.  I’m sure you all will beat the shit out of me for being a Debbie downer and/or a troll but we’re fucked.

    Nothing has happened yet.

  39. 39.

    Omnes Omnibus

    Copied from below:

    1.  RIP RBG and thank you for lifetime of service and accomplishments.
    2. Fuck you to all the alternative history people.
    3. Don’t fucking panic.
    4. Start calling our senators not later than Monday morning.
    5. I may need to stay clear of this site for a while because of 2 and 3.
  42. 42.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    Before anyone gets to carried away on panic; do remember the evangelicals and the right are quite disappointed with Kavanaugh and the Kavanaugh had a big negative effect on the midterms for the Republicans.

    Remember those conservative justices aren’t there for the Culture War, they are there to protect Corporate citizen hood, which is an evil all  in it’s own.

  43. 43.

    Chris Johnson

    We were always going to have to do more than just try to work with a Kavanaugh Supreme Court. We were always going to face this at some point.

    I want to hear the Lincoln Project podcast on this one. I don’t want to be hearing from screaming wailing doom-struck liberals. We are going to have to fight, and this is irresistible bait for the Trump people to shove Putin into the Supreme Court, or Jared, or fuckin’ Ivanka or something.

    We won’t be the only ones fighting back. Trump is not going to be trying to do something to help the Republicans. He is going to try to do something to help only him and his imperial dreams. Like put Barr on the Supreme Court or something. He’s going to be trying something that previously cooperative Republicans will balk at. It won’t be just Federalist pukes. He will be directly playing for monarchy and the effective dissolution of the Supreme Court itself, in favor of him as the sole arbiter.

    HE WILL OVERREACH. That doesn’t mean it will succeed.

  44. 44.

    Mary G

    NEW: Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) announces she will NOT vote to replace RBG on SCOTUS until after Election Day. "Fair is fair," she says.— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) September 18, 2020

    Means exactly squat.

  47. 47.

    Cacti

    Let’s not bullshit ourselves.  There’s zero chance that we don’t end up with a right wing reactionary in her place either before the election, or in the lame duck session.

    The only solution left is amending the Judiciary Act.  The question is, if the Dems win, do they have the stones to do it.

  50. 50.

    Martin

    Reminder that Harris campaigned on adding seats to USSC. Biden, Schumer and Pelosi should have a presser where they say that if Trump/McConnell seat a replacement prior to the election, or in the event Biden wins, that they will add 2 seats to USSC.

    Republicans don’t care about their last rule. As far as they are concerned, Democrats are ungovernable and unable to govern, so whatever rules they need to invent are valid. Tell them what the consequences will be if they do it.

  51. 51.

    natem

    Already encouraged how Our Principled News Media will continue to remind everyone McConnell’s chicanery to Merrick Garland four years ago, and lay bare how hypocritical and power hungry he and the GOP…

    Oh God, I tried finishing that sentence but I couldn’t. All of this sucks.

  55. 55.

    Brachiator

    @Cacti:

    Should have retired after her second bout of cancer.

    Is there a tradition of Justices doing this?

    Is there a tradition of the oldest Justices retiring as soon as a new president is elected?

    “Should have…” is perhaps the dumbest and most pointless phrase in any language.

  58. 58.

    zhena gogolia

    @Baud:

    I made the mistake of reading our student newspaper today. Big huge op-ed about how you should put your energy into the uprising instead of electoralism and you don’t have to settle for Biden.

  59. 59.

    natem

    Also I fully expect dizzying stories in the next few days about Collins, Murkowski, and Romney taking some grand stand against appointment before November 3. That will be fun, too, because we all know how that’s going to end.

  61. 61.

    Kent

    Fuck

    Trump is so feral I expect he might wait until after the election before announcing to light a bigger fire under his conservative base.  But the lame duck session is going to be for all the marbles.

  63. 63.

    WV Blondie

    Already talking with friends and family about occupying our R senator’s office.

    Rest in glory, Justice Ginsburg.

  69. 69.

    Llelldorin

    There’s a small chance—basically the Harriet Miers possibility. If Trump decides to demonstrate that he is too in charge (stamps foot), there’s a small chance that he’ll nominate someone unacceptable even on the right.

     

    It’s not that likely—so far he’s followed the Federalist Society’s nomination list pretty strictly. You never know, though.

  71. 71.

    Another Scott

    Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a warrior for justice, a shield for the oppressed, and a titan of American jurisprudence on the United States Supreme Court.

    We’ll not see her like again.

    May her memory be a blessing to her loved ones, and to a grateful, grieving nation.

    — Rep. Don Beyer (@RepDonBeyer) September 19, 2020

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  72. 72.

    Brachiator

    @zhena gogolia:

    Big huge op-ed about how you should put your energy into the uprising instead of electoralism and you don’t have to settle for Biden.

    What uprising? And how is this uprising supposed to work?

  75. 75.

    Sab

    @JoyceH: I am buying a flag tomorrow. Half mast for now.

    Flaming arrow at my Trumpian neighbors flag across the street.

    (Why would an intelligent person nail a flag to their oak tree when oat wilt is a problem locally? Oh yes. ” Intelligent person”.)

    I hope she doesn’t kill her tree. It is huge and gently shades several yards.

    She is running an unlicensed daycare without masks and with a trampoline. All of them go out to meet the ice cream truck. Nobody has masks.

  77. 77.

    Goku (Amerikan Baka)

    @Baud:

    This. I hope this will convince the Dem Congressional leaders and Biden that we will have no choice but to pack the Supreme Court

  78. 78.

    Wolvesvalley

    I kicked in a contribution, even though I had already donated to Biden’s campaign this month. I would like to see a huge spike in his support as a visible reaction to RGB’s death.

    Thank you, Doug, for providing a way to make myself feel a little bit better.

    Fuck cancer.

  80. 80.

    Sister Golden Bear

    @BettyPageisaBlonde:

    As fellow out and proud trans woman, I’m also TERRIFIED what could happen if Moscow Mitch jams through another fascist reactionary judge. I fully expect the legal rights  I just gained to be swept away—along with the rights anyone else who’s not a cis-het fundamental white man.

    Tonight I mourn and drink heavily. Tomorrow I fight. MFers don’t know what it’s like to be up against someone with nothing left to lose.

  81. 81.

    Zinsky

    Game on!  Shit is about to get real, real fast.  I’m sure TurtleHead McConnell is plotting which right-wing turd to float into the Senate next week to stick the final knife into Roe v. Wade.  We need to all get really active in the next 45 days and make sure everyone votes and votes for someone who is not going to make bad choices about women’s rights, gay rights and all people’s rights.

  83. 83.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Just all of y’all saying “she should have retired when Obama was POTUS, she should have resigned when she first became sick,” you can SHUT THE FUCK UP RIGHT FUCKING NOW. I don’t want to hear it. RBG did what she needed to do, and she did it superlatively well. Do NOT blame her for whatever awfulness Trump and McConnell are going to try to impose on this country.

    Weeping for a grand lady, sick for our country. Rest in peace, rise in glory, Justice Ginsburg.

  84. 84.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Martin: Denying Merrick Garland a vote on the basis of some made-up tradition + throwing out that tradition to replace RBG = moral and political justification for court-packing. Biden and Harris should just come out and say it now, start preparing the field. I think there’s far more Democratic support behind the idea than there would have been even four years ago.

    Which means we’re not fucked, if we can win this election. The question is just whether Trump can get away with using Supreme Court hackery to steal the election. I’m convinced they’re going to try.

  85. 85.

    PsiFighter37

    I do wonder what the Lincoln Project / Never Trump GOP folks will make of this, since this is really what their end goal has always been about: controlling SCOTUS so they can roll us back to the early 20th century, if not further back.

  88. 88.

    Mary G

    Jimmy Carter on RBG: "A powerful legal mind and a staunch advocate for gender equality, she has been a beacon of justice … I was proud to have appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980. We join countless Americans in mourning the loss of a truly great woman."— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) September 19, 2020

  89. 89.

    Citizen_X

    @natem:  If there’s anything good about this, it’s that Susan Collins will spend all of October doing her Concerned act, and hopefully Mainers are so sick of it by this point that it’ll sink her.

  92. 92.

    Trollhattan

    @Leto:

    I hear the MAGA prepschool kid who yelled at the American Indian guy is available.

    Very sad to lose such a great American. Thank you, madam justice.

  94. 94.

    Kent

    @Llelldorin:

    There’s a small chance—basically the Harriet Miers possibility. If Trump decides to demonstrate that he is too in charge (stamps foot), there’s a small chance that he’ll nominate someone unacceptable even on the right.

    It’s not that likely—so far he’s followed the Federalist Society’s nomination list pretty strictly. You never know, though.

    Trump doesn’t give a flying fuck who is on the Supreme Court.  He is ONLY interested in what is best for Trump and his re-election.  I’m guessing he doesn’t formally submit a name until after the election to keep his conservative base fired up to get him re-elected.  If they try to jam someone through before the election there is one less reason to vote for Trump.

    At least that’s my guess.  Who the fuck knows.

    There may be some GOP Senators who don’t want to spend their Christmas in a knock down drag out fight during a lame duck.

  95. 95.

    Another Scott

    @Another Scott:

    The good Rep also reminds us:

    Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble. #goodtrouble

    — John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) June 27, 2018

    Hang in there, everyone.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  97. 97.

    Sab

    @Goku (Amerikan Baka): Have you decided on your judges? Supreme court Jennifer Brunner without reserve, John O’ Donnell (Cuyahoga County Democrat which makes me wary but alternative is a Republican.) This makes me nuts. Statewide we couldn’t get some one clean? I don’t know that he isn’t clean, but one must go wary with Cuyahoga County. But with Republicans we absolutely know they aren’t clean.

  98. 98.

    Poe Larity

    I will dollar match the first $1000 donated on this thread. I dont care what you’ve given before, this thread only.

  101. 101.

    guachi

    I wonder if there will be enough votes to overturn not only abortion but gay marriage.

    I don’t see how the Republicans don’t get someone on the Court and I also don’t see the Democrats adding two seats to the Court. It’s worth fighting for, I guess, but I think the most likely outcome is being screwed for decades as Republican Justices can just retire when there’s a Republican President.

    I’d like to be more upset but RBG dying isn’t a surprising outcome in the least.

  104. 104.

    Mary G

    According to Jewish tradition, a person who dies on Rosh Hashanah, which began tonight, is a tzaddik, a person of great righteousness. Baruch Dayan HaEmet.— Ruth Franklin (@ruth_franklin) September 19, 2020

  105. 105.

    patroclus

    Well, I’m not defeatist.  I think that there is a good chance that any effort to replace RBG before Inauguration Day can be stopped.  Trump will almost certainly put someone forward soon – I’m guessing within 10-14 days.  But there simply  won’t be enough time to hold hearings and schedule a vote before Election Day.  Graham is running for re-election and would have to chair the hearings and supervise all the vetting and do a lot of work.  So, everything will inevitably be delayed until after the election.  The lame duck will be key – can McConnell hold his caucus in the 2+ months in order to jam it through.  And if Kelly wins in Arizona and the Georgia special goes to the Dems, both could be sworn in immediately thus giving us 2 (+ Murkowski – 3) of the 4 votes we need.  Romney?  Sasse?  Alexander??  I think we can stop this – especially if Trump, per usual, over-reaches and nominates someone ridiculous.

  110. 110.

    J R in WV

    Fuck you guys.

    Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a hero who worked her whole life for freedom and equality. She achieved more in six months that either of you will your whole lives, and you should shut your yaps criticizing her heroism, and do that right now. Both into the pie safe for the rest of my life.

    Fuck you guys ~!!~

  113. 113.

    Percysowner

    To all those saying “she should have quit” let’s look at the facts. Her first cancer diagnosis was in 1999 TWENTY ONE years ago. Her second in 2009 ELEVEN years ago. Beating cancer usually is counted on no recurrence in five years. So by 2014 she would have thought herself out of the woods. She had her third diagnosis in 2018, when retiring was simply not an option. Frankly, it wasn’t an option after 2015 with McConnell  licking his lips for an extra replacement.

    The timing stinks, but she was healthy during Obama’s term and had no real reason to think she couldn’t hold out until January 2021.

    She was a warrior, a good woman and a great champion of the rights of those who aren’t white, male and wealthy. Let’s celebrate that, not denigrate a legend.

  114. 114.

    lamh36

    @SiubhanDuinne: I agree.  It’s not RBG’s fault 53% of the same folks who should have voted against Chump instead voted for him.  Nor was it her faulth that Bernie and his bros refused to let the primaries go and pounded HRC as much as the GOP did.  Nor was it RGB’s fault that too many idiots actually wasted their byt voting for Jill Stein.

    None of that was RBG’s fault

  115. 115.

    Chris Johnson

    @Llelldorin: Not ‘unacceptable even from the right’, unacceptable to non-Trumpist Republicans. He can’t keep on pushing his luck, but he ONLY ever pushes his luck, because he has to: if it breaks once, he’s doomed. He is a traitor who answers to Vladimir Putin and a complete criminal pile of shit, and plenty of Republicans didn’t want him to win the primary, and plenty of Republicans are trying not to believe he is actually the one who’ll end America as we know it.

    And he is… so he thinks.

    It is NOT a given that he will succeed in doing the horriblest imaginable thing here. It is only a given that he will try.

    I would also add that Trump does not understand what the Federalist Society is, and has no idea what they want or why. He respects them as much as he respects our military dead. He may try to force them to approve HIS pick, which might be truly bonkers.

  119. 119.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Goku (Amerikan Baka): As an LGM reader, I find the idea that there’s a paralyzing amount of negativity here kind of amusing. I am a sunshine and rainbows Polyanna person compared to a couple of their front-pagers, let alone the commenters.

  120. 120.

    Another Scott

    He’s not off stage yet, I believe, and doesn’t know she died, but ABC has already published this story. Looks very much like a decision made for him. https://t.co/aiKd87vWbF

    — southpaw (@nycsouthpaw) September 19, 2020

    Unsurprising.

    Grr…

    This isn’t a battle that will be won in the next 12 hours or the next two weeks. It will be, like just about everything else about 2020, a slog. Stay strong. Eyes on the prizes.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  121. 121.

    pattonbt

    @patroclus: you honestly think they couldn’t just ram someone through without any pretence? I think that is naive. This is their last shot for a while and McConnell is evil. They will hold to no norms to get this seat in before trump loses and the senate is gone. Whether they are successful or not rests on three republican senators (whoever they might be) . Will three stand up? I have no faith in any republican.

  122. 122.

    cmorenc

    We are fucked. The GOP & Moscow Mitch and Trump are already engineering a reactionary replacement specially picked to undo the foundations for progressive government and civil rights of women, gays, etc. The people around Trump won’t let him indulge nominating Ted Cruz – it will instead be a woman with the sort of horrendously reactionary mindset of Sen. Marsha Blackburn R-Tenn.

    And even if they can’t confirm a nominee before the election, and the Rs lose the Senate in November, that won’t stop them from ramming Trump’s nominee through during the rump post-election session

    I really wish it was different, that the GOP would permit the result of the election to determine who gets to nominate RGB’s replacement, on the same principle that they held up the nomination of Merrick Garland.  But they won’t, because that “principle” McConnell announced about within a year before a Presidential election, let the election determine who gets to choose was an excuse, not a principle.  McConnell has as much as said so about the potential prospect of RBG’s seat becoming vacant in the runup or even the post-election rump session.

  123. 123.

    JMG

    At dinner tonight, my son’s fiancee, a white Protestant from Missouri, burst into tears when she heard of RBG dying. She meant a lot to women. Since I am a man, I was like a dolt surprised by the intensity of her reaction. As for Trump and McConnell, go ahead boys, stick your hands in that hornets nest.

  124. 124.

    Brachiator

    @Kent:

    Who the fuck knows.

    Exactly. There is not much point in speculation, although I know that is what the Internet does.

    We shall see what happens.

  125. 125.

    Mary G

    “Ruthie” ?

    Ruthie was my friend and I will miss her terribly. The t-shirts simply labeled “RBG” made her notorious. But it was her wit, her tenaciousness, and her skill as a jurist that made her an icon.— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) September 19, 2020

  128. 128.

    Eljai

    @patroclus: I agree.  I’m not giving up.  McConnell just released a statement saying that Trump’s nominee will get a vote on the floor of the Senate.  He is a disgraceful ghoul.  But there is such a thing as unintended consequences.  This has me very fired up and I know I’m not alone.  Evangelicals are not the only ones who can get ginned up.  We can be fired up too.  And we still outnumber them.

  130. 130.

    patroclus

    @Omnes Omnibus:Moreover, this gives Collins, Gardner, Tillis, McSally and others the opportunity to try to get re-elected by saying that they won’t vote on a replacement until after Inauguration Day.  That is, to show independence in an effort to appeal to other than Trump voters.  If they truly sense a loss, this is a golden opportunity to try to change that, and by saying they won’t vote for a vote, they are effectively doing nothing, which is what they do well.

    McConnell just said that there will be a vote – let’s see.  This isn’t over, by any stretch.  First, let’s see who the nominee is.

  132. 132.

    debbie

    @Sab:

    If he or she is in the Democratic Party, you vote for him or her. The dirtiest of Dems is a better choice than any Rethuglican, period. The choice couldn’t be easier.

  134. 134.

    Comrade Colette Collaboratrice

    My 17-year-old son asked why I was crying, and when I said it was because Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died, he paused and then said, “I don’t know who that is.
    I have failed as a parent.

    RBG, z”l.

  135. 135.

    Mousebumples

    Joe will need a Democratic Senate. I’m redoubling my postcarding efforts. At least 10 more tonight.

    Rest In Peace, RGB. You’ve worked for us, for years. Now it’s our chance to work for you. ?

  136. 136.

    Calouste

    @rikyrah: 

    I think people who lived (or not) through either of the World Wars, and probably even the Great Depression, not even talking about various historical plagues, famines, and genocides, would happily trade their year with 2020.

  138. 138.

    Thaddeu

    Thirteen on the Court

    Thirteen on the Court

    Thirteen on the Court

    Thirteen on the Court

    Thirteen on the Court

     

    It will end with  Thirteen on the Court

  139. 139.

    pattonbt

    And on time for a pick me up, my overseas Colorado ballot just hit my email. First thing when I get home is to vote and get it in!

  140. 140.

    Crashman06

    The Supreme Court has been a ticking time bomb since 2016. It was always going to have to be addressed and this just forces the crisis point sooner. We have to win this election and pack the court.

  144. 144.

    guachi

    @Omnes Omnibus: You give me the odds on there being four Republicans who won’t want a vote. You give me the odds on the Democrats adding two Justices next year. And if you’re seriously surprised Ginsburg died then you haven’t been paying attention to the news.

  145. 145.

    Wyndmoor

    I’m focusing all of my fear on Susan Collins. She will be receiving calls from me every single day. In fact, I’m listening to Bowie’s Under Pressure in happy anticipation of the shit show this puts her right in the center of.  I’m lucky to have that race to channel my negative feelings into. Thanks, Susan!

  147. 147.

    Goku (Amerikan Baka)

    @Sab:

    Hasn’t been on my radar. I will vote for whoever the Democrat is

     

    @guachi:

    I also don’t see the Democrats adding two seats to the Court. It’s worth fighting for, I guess, but I think the most likely outcome is being screwed for decades as Republican Justices can just retire when there’s a Republican President

    Why not? If nothing else, this will only push Dems to pack the SCOTUS. We had to do that if we stand a chance of saving democracy

    @Matt McIrvin:

    Oh believe me I know. Several former BJ commenters there are real pieces of work.

  149. 149.

    Matt McIrvin

    Kamala Harris has already said she’s open to expanding the Supreme Court. The idea’s mainstream.

  150. 150.

    lamh36

    So what do we think we’ll get from the Never Trumpers on this?

     

    I hate to break it to you folks but nothing brings Never Trumpers home like the scent of a SCOTUS seat. This election has become exponentially more dangerous.

    7:58 PM · Sep 18, 2020

    I’ve never trusted them, but they have been allies against Chump.  But Never Trumpers are still GOP and conservatives at heart. Even George Conway stayed silent when it came to Chump’s SCOTUS nominees.

  151. 151.

    zhena gogolia

    The Democrats are not going to pack the court. Four Republican Senators are not going to buck McConnell.

  152. 152.

    Chris Johnson

    @patroclus:especially if Trump, per usual, over-reaches and nominates someone ridiculous.

    Trump is absolutely going to over-reach and nominate someone ridiculous.

    Why?

    Because he is not actually trying to help the Republicans at all. He is a Russian-installed traitor and does not share ANY of the values the Republicans cling to. This is his only chance to make a kangaroo court that will let him get away with his crimes and/or make him President for life, and Jarvanka after him. And he’s going to try and do that as hard as he possibly can and pressure the Senate to back him, even though it destroys America as they know it.

    He’s going to overreach so hard that this is not a foregone conclusion. This could be the day that the Republicans were truly destroyed forever… the day that their leader decided to betray them for good, all to serve his need and his need alone.

    He doesn’t care about their needs, or their goals, or them. At all. He will refuse to nominate anybody normal: only a complete apparatchik will suffice.

  153. 153.

    Brachiator

    @Percysowner:

    To all those saying “she should have quit” let’s look at the facts. Her first cancer diagnosis was in 1999 TWENTY ONE years ago. Her second in 2009 ELEVEN years ago. Beating cancer usually is counted on no recurrence in five years. So by 2014 she would have thought herself out of the woods. She had her third diagnosis in 2018, when retiring was simply not an option. Frankly, it wasn’t an option after 2015 with McConnell  licking his lips for an extra replacement.

    Thanks for this. It bears repeating.

    All of the “RBG should have…” people are full of hindshite.

  154. 154.

    patroclus

    @pattonbt: Yes.  There is no chance whatsoever a vote will be held prior to Election Day.  So, the election will have been held and the results (mostly) known before any hearings or vote.  Elections and electoral campaigns have consequences.  We’ll see.  I actually think that this will fire the Dems up and will help Biden and all Dems in the election and thereafter.  McConnell is not omnipotent – 4 announced refusals to allow a vote will kill any nomination prior to Inauguration.  This is an opportunity to start winning.

  155. 155.

    James E Powell

    @patroclus:

    I think that there is a good chance that any effort to replace RBG before Inauguration Day can be stopped.

    McConnell has already issued a statement that whoever Trump nominates will get a vote on the senate floor.

  159. 159.

    Martin

    McConnell just announced they’ll vote on a replacement. Not surprised.

    Dems need to use this to win the Senate and commit to adding 2 seats. There are no norms, and only sometimes laws.

    Trump’s ability to litigate this election just got a bit stronger. I don’t think it’ll work, but he’ll surely try.

  160. 160.

    guachi

    @zhena gogolia: Exactly. It *might* happen but it’s extremely unlikely unless the Democrats get to 52 seats or something so that the Democrats who won’t ever vote for such a bill can vote ‘no’.

  163. 163.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @J R in WV: yeah, I’m usually not an advocate of banning, and I usually agree with Cacti in substance if not in tone, but… they can both fuck the fuck off tonight.

  167. 167.

    pattonbt

    @patroclus: I don’t trust them at all. They have no reason to play by any rules. This is the golden ring. I wouldn’t be surprised if a vote for a new justice is held by October 1st. Alarmist? Probably. But do you honestly put anything past trump or McConnell? And do you have faith in four republican senators (whomever they may be)? I don’t. I will happily be proven wrong.

  169. 169.

    Splitting Image

    Ginsburg was one of the greats and will be sorely missed.

    All I have to say about the “she should have retired” meme is that if Ginsburg’s successor was important enough for her to give up her seat in the short window during which the Democrats had the ability to appoint her replacement, then her successor was also important enough to make sure that enough Democrats were in office for them to be the ones choosing her successor now.

  170. 170.

    Calouste

    @Mary G: And the shitgibbon will want that before the election, because he doesn’t trust John Roberts (maybe rightly so) to throw the election to him.

  171. 171.

    Matt McIrvin

    @patroclus: So, imagine Biden wins, the Democrats take the Senate but the new Senate hasn’t been seated; the Electoral College vote hasn’t yet been certified…

    does the SCOTUS confirmation process become an open endorsement by the lame-duck Senate of finding someone who will rubber-stamp a nullification of the election results? Does the media normalize it, treat it like a big old game?

  174. 174.

    Goku (Amerikan Baka)

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    No Omnes, don’t you understand? We’re fucked and doomed! There’s no point in trying because the GOP is invincible and Trump is 10 feet tall! /s

    I swear to god, most people here would’ve tried to convince Churchill to negotiate surrender in WW2 before the US and the USSR entered

  175. 175.

    jonas

    BTW since “there’s always a tweet,” has anyone dug up any of what must be dozens of 2016 Trump tweets about how “outrageous!” it would be to appoint a replacement for Scalia 6 months out from a presidential election and how Obama was trying to hijack the court by nominating Merrick Garland or something?

    I’ll just add that if Dems win a solid Senate majority, Biden’s first order of business needs to be to nominate Merrick Garland or other suitable progressive for a 10th seat on the court. His was stolen by Gorsuch and there needs to be a re-balance.

  177. 177.

    JPL

    When trump said his next nominee could be Ted Cruz, he wasn’t just teasing.   There’s a good chance he knew how ill RBG was.  He might not have known that she died, but chances are he did.   He just couldn’t be bothered to say something nice.

  179. 179.

    J R in WV

    @Sab:

    She is running an unlicensed daycare without masks and with a trampoline. All of them go out to meet the ice cream truck. Nobody has masks.

    Call child protective services first thing Monday morning. Not legal, what she’s doing!

  180. 180.

    Goku (Amerikan Baka)

    @zhena gogolia:

    I’ve been on this planet for a while

    That’s not an actual explanation. I’m sorry but we don’t have a fucking choice. We have to pack the SCOTUS and the federal courts. We have to try to force the Congressional Dems to do it. We can’t wallow in despair

    Don’t be sad, be angry. If it comes down to it, we may have to overthrow Trump. Look at many other examples around the world and history. It’s possible. The Belarusian people aren’t afraid and they’re facing tougher odds than we are

  181. 181.

    lamh36

    @lamh36:

    the question becomes will they put the effort into opposing a judge Chump nominates?

    There silence will be the tell. It’s all in or nothin.

    That’s what I mean.

  185. 185.

    Layer8Problem

    We have to win the Senate. It’s doable. And if they pull the “No matter what we said about Garland, it’s ok if it’s a Republican” card and stick someone in so fast his/her robes are smoking, then we get the Congress to pack the Court. That’s all. Pack. The. Court. Oh yeah, after vanishing the filibuster, honored tradition be damned. And expand the federal bench while they’re at it. Burying equivocating Democratic senators in phone calls demanding they do the right thing has an effect.

    And to everybody screaming “we’re all doomed,” take a goddamned pill or drink yourself to sleep, get up tomorrow morning, AND FIGHT. Donate, write postcards, get hung up on ten times for every “thanks for calling!” I get it, I do. I’ve felt it myself. Fight, and wipe the smirk off their face.

  186. 186.

    OGLiberal

    Some questions…not challenging, just want thoughts/info:

    • Will GOPers at risk/with an “independent” rep push back on a selection before the election?
    • Do those at risk who are heading for a loss based on current polling (McSally, Collins) care or does knowing they are going to lose lead them to vote for what will give them the best chance for a post-Senatorial wingnut welfare job?
    • Do those in tossup races (eg, Graham) think that supporting Trump will help them?
    • Do those who don’t really care because they’ll win no matter what (Murkowski) vote against because they can look “independent” and still win?
    • Do any Dems (Manchin) buck the party?
    • What does it take to increase the number of SCOTUS seats.  Assume the filibuster is killed outright…is that enough or is it an amendment like thing where you need approval from 2/3 of the states? (I am not an anti-filibuster absolutist but this would put me on the side of getting rid of it)
    • Is an impeachment of Kavanaugh anywhere near something that is possible?
    • What are the chances this asshole doesn’t put somebody on the court before the election?
    • What are the chances a lame duck Trump/Mitch don’t fill this seat even if Trump loses?
  188. 188.

    prostratedragon

    @pattonbt:  Yay! Expecting my Illinois ballot in about a week. I’ve noticed that for the last week or so my mail has been coming in very efficiently again, suddenly.

  190. 190.

    Matt McIrvin

    @guachi:

    I also don’t see the Democrats adding two seats to the Court.

    Why not?
    This idea was becoming mainstream as early as a year ago. What happened today… we might have dared to dream we were out of the woods but everyone already saw it coming in 2016. And in 2019, most of the Democratic presidential candidates actually said they were open to the idea. (Who didn’t? Bernie Sanders and a couple of others. I don’t think Biden was asked.)

    I think the incredible hardball/hypocrisy of McConnell invoking a nonexistent tradition to block Merrick Garland, then explicitly saying he’d throw out said nonexistent tradition for a Trump appointee, gives Democrats the moral cover and quite possibly enough outrage. If we want it to happen we have to make it happen.

  191. 191.

    Goku (Amerikan Baka)

    BTW, I saw DougJ make a comment last thread that “what the others say about you (Silverman) were right”.

    What did he mean by that?

  192. 192.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @OGLiberal:

    • Do any Dems (Manchin) buck the party.

    McConnell’s hypocrisy gives him a hook to hang that vote on. I’d say it’s fifty-fifty

    • Is an impeachment of Kavanaugh anywhere near something that is possible?

    • No

    And I wish people would stop counting pack-the-court chickens. We have a lot of fucking elections to win

  196. 196.

    Goku (Amerikan Baka)

    @Matt McIrvin:

    I think the incredible hardball/hypocrisy of McConnell invoking a nonexistent tradition to block Merrick Garland, then explicitly saying he’d throw out said nonexistent tradition for a Trump appointee, gives Democrats the moral cover and quite possibly enough outrage. If we want it to happen we have to make it happen

    This. We have the cover and we have no choice at this point

  197. 197.

    Another Scott

    Tonight, the flags are flying at half staff over the Capitol to honor the patriotism of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Every woman and girl, and therefore every family, in America has benefitted from her brilliance.

    — Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) September 19, 2020

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  199. 199.

    Matt McIrvin

    And I wish people would stop counting pack-the-court chickens.

    Not trying to predict the future, trying to affect it. I’m seeing a lot of “we’re fucked even if we win” right now and that’s a possible way we’re not.

  200. 200.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Matt McIrvin: There’s a lot of work to do to win the White House and the Senate, and I’m not convinced court packing is a winning issue in the non-online world.

  202. 202.

    Goku (Amerikan Baka)

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    It doesn’t matter if it’s a “winning issue”. We literally have no choice if we want to remain a democracy. It must be done. Packing the SCOTUS and the federal courts will put us ahead the next time we lose the WH/Senate

  203. 203.

    OGLiberal

    To get away from my despair for a bit, RBG lived a long, fruitful life so while anybody’s passing is sad, if there is a heaven I’m sure she’s there telling Marty, “I done good.”  This woman was a great jurist and voice.  Wingers will rejoice but this is a sad loss for everybody.

  205. 205.

    J R in WV

    @Mary G:

    September 18, 2020 at 8:48 pm

    According to Jewish tradition, a person who dies on Rosh Hashanah, which began tonight, is a tzaddik, a person of great righteousness. Baruch Dayan HaEmet.— Ruth Franklin (@ruth_franklin) September 19, 2020

    Obviously a great truth about Ruth Bader Ginsburg. A hero as well.
     

    @JMG:

    At dinner tonight, my son’s fiancee, a white Protestant from Missouri, burst into tears when she heard of RBG dying. She meant a lot to women. Since I am a man, I was like a dolt surprised by the intensity of her reaction. As for Trump and McConnell, go ahead boys, stick your hands in that hornets nest.

    Another great truth, what RBG meant to women everywhere, even in Missouri~!!~

    These are the comments that mean something; not the pitiful wails of “She should have resigned!” which is not what heroes do. They serve as long as they live to serve. Like Ruth Baden Ginsburg!

    What a role model for everyone going into this election!! So proud of her life’s work!

  207. 207.

    J R in WV

    @OGLiberal:

    • What does it take to increase the number of SCOTUS seats.  Assume the filibuster is killed outright…is that enough or is it an amendment like thing where you need approval from 2/3 of the states? (I am not an anti-filibuster absolutist but this would put me on the side of getting rid of it)

    • Is an impeachment of Kavanaugh anywhere near something that is possible?

    The number of justices is set by a standard law, so that a simple majority of both houses could make a change in that rule. Same for number of members of the House of Representatives, a simple law.

    I would hope that a piece of ambulatory scum like Kavanaugh, who obviously lied during his confirmation hearing, would be easily impeached.

    Who knows, tho?

  208. 208.

    Chris Johnson

    Wingers should not be rejoicing. In some ways this is the worst possible thing for them: the frenzied gallop toward monarchy is beginning to be a danger to the Trumpists. Do not forget Trump is NOT a Republican… not really.

    In the words of Mitt Romney, John McCain, and Rep. Doug Lamborn, make this be their tar baby. In the literal, Uncle Remus story sense of the phrase: they cannot resist grabbing this. They’re in great danger of losing a wave election, and they can’t resist frantically trying to pack the court their way, brazenly… and they may try it even if the nomination they’re given is fuckin’ Jared Kushner.

    And the real functional point of that story, and as suggested it’s an analogy that will be extra vivid to Republicans, is that they are grabbing for something that will entrap them and lead them to a sticky end. They are already in great danger of being overwhelmed by an angry wave against them. Carry on this way, and it legitimizes very forceful counterattack, beyond simply being overwhelmed politically.

    Or, they can pass up grabbing at the tempting thing even though Trump demands they not only do it, but do it his way (think he was joking about Ted Cruz? The Senate HATES Cruz). In a similar situation, John McCain gave a very public thumbs-down and screwed McConnell. Romney is off the reservation. These are not normal times.

    What these Republicans want is for everything to go back to how it was when they were kings of the world and honorable gentlemen.

    They DON’T GET THAT with Trump. He brings a nightmare world in which they’re no more than puppets. Some of them are old enough to understand that.

  209. 209.

    Gvg

    @Percysowner: her second bout was while Obama was president and he had the Senate. She wasn’t young or healthy before the cancer and it was at that point obvious the GOP had gone nuts and was trying to stack the court with YOUNG zealots. It would have been wiser for the very causes she fought all her life for to retire then. She undid many advance she had made over years by not recognizing the moment. Other people are going to pay the price and some of us are panicked and depressed about this. How about realizing that the underlying cause of some of us being angry AT her is fear for ourselves and loved ones?
    She fought many Long strategic battles to accomplish advances in human rights, then missed a significant cue. She made a mistake, a big one to me. Once democrats lost the Senate, there was nothing to be done but try and hold on, however there really was a good time for her to have retired, from the moment Al Franken was seated, till we lost the Senate in 2010.

    I am afraid. I have been afraid for years now. Maybe I should say terror.

  211. 211.

    Gvg

    Trump wants a judge who will vote he can pardon himself or will favor him in count the vote fights after Election Day. He’ll want private assurances from whoever he nominates. We need to watch him carefully and try to blow up whomever he nominates. He isn’t a regular conservative, he sees himself as President for life. We need opposition research on all possible nominees. Find out things GOP senators don’t like.

  213. 213.

    Reboot

    @zhena gogolia: Dead thread, but here’s part of what I just wrote my senators: Here is a wish for Ruth Bader Ginsburg to rest in peace. Please do everything in your power to honor Justice Ginsburg by delaying replacement on the Supreme Court, up to and including using the filibuster, until after the election. Please ask your colleagues like senators Murkowski and Grassley to lobby their Republican colleagues to play fair….

    So.

    Tomorrow, another Senate donation, and early next week, early voting in person. And ear to the ground to see if there’s any other noise I can make to make a possible difference. Outcomes are never certain….

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