(02-01-2017 09:13 AM)RiceLad15 Wrote:  He's not technically part of the admin, but Trump nominated "his" Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch. From what I've read he is basically a clone of Scalia, so the horrible Republican obstruction of Obama's replacement nominee works out in the end.

Now we wait and see if Democrats return the favor and try and hold up this nominee. I hope that we do not see a concerted effort due to the obvious hypocrisy of doing so after complaining loudly (and rightfully) about the Republican party's decision to stonewall Garland. At some point one party has to decide to be the bigger person and get over this pissing match that is hamstringing the government and keeping elected officials from doing the job they were elected to do. I hope that the Democrats take a step in that direction here.

However, my hope does leave me wondering. If there is no concerted Democratic opposition to the pick, doesn't it let the Republicans off the hook for such a unprecedented, crass, and obviously partisan obstruction? Does it not, in some way, encourage Mr. Turtle and Co. to continue being partisan bumps on the logs when it doesn't suit their interests?

The Democrats are probably better off holding their opposition to one of the next two justice replacements. Even with Scalia on the court, it was hardly home to right-wing "policy" successes. (I know they don't set policy, but do make interpretations that potentially allow those laws to move forward or not.) So swapping a Scalia for Gorsuch hardly tips the balance.

When Kennedy or particularly RBG are no longer on the bench and need to be replaced, that's when the fights are really going to pick up. And if they oppose now with all they have and lose, they'll be that much weaker when they decide to fight for the future balance of the Supreme Court.

Plus, Gorsuch was confirmed without a single opposing vote the last time. Is he really that much worse now than he was then? Yes, there are opinions he helped write that certainly aren't appreciated by Democrats. But my guess is that the best strategy is to highlight those concerns, vote against him all you want, but save the big weapons for another day.

Same for the Republicans on the nuclear option (waiving filibuster for SC nominations).