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Batten Down the Hatches! Justice Breyer is Retiring!
Would it be “jumping the gun” to predict that all hell is about to break loose? I think not.
Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer will retire — once a replacement has been confirmed — after serving for nearly three decades on America’s highest court, according to reporting confirmed by NBC News on Wednesday.
The retirement of Breyer — who at 83 is the Supreme Court’s oldest justice — will allow President Biden to nominate a replacement, giving liberals a chance to lock in a reliably liberal justice for decades to come.
President Biden has previously promised that, if given the chance, his first nominee to the Supreme Court would be a black woman. Potential nominees who fit the bill, according to NBC, include “federal Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, former Breyer law clerk, and Leondra Kruger, a justice on California’s Supreme Court.”
The news sets up a bitter confirmation fight just before the midterm elections in which Democrats are expected to suffer significant losses in Congress. With a currently razor-thin majority in the U.S. Senate, every Democrat will need to be onboard with whomever President Biden nominates. But a Democratic caucus that hasn’t been entirely unified in Biden’s first year in office, means that Senators such as Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) could pose an obstacle to radical nominees.
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I think Biden should nominate our newest 4 star admiral. Underrepresented “communities” come in all shapes and sizes.
News from the future: Biden’s puppet masters nominate a far-left radical. The GOP will approve without putting up much of a fight.
If the Dem/Prog knives are out for FJB then the nominee will be Kamala Harris. That’ll clear the way for someone Oval-Office ready to be appointed VP. Then it’s 25th Amendment time.
If the nominee is ABK (anybody but Kamala) then they are going to try to ride it out with FJB at the top.
Either way, there’s nothing the GOP can do to stop it. At least not alone. McConnell made approval of Supreme Court nominees a simple majority affair. No supermajority needed. So even assuming a solid GOP opposition, unless Manchin or Sinema do something dramatic it’s 50/50 with the VP casting the deciding vote.
Which, by the way, is just how McConnell likes it. He and the other RINOs can preen and strut and rant knowing full well it’s all moot.
You forget that Biden ran as a moderate.
So he’ll obviously select a moderate judge – not right-wing, not left-wing – a moderate.
Obviously.
What a hoot! You’re a funny guy.
Sigh. Can you even imagine what is considered “moderate” these days? Oh, my head . . .
Biden has apparently committed to nominating a black female.
Dems have the effective majority thanks to the Georgia secretary of state.
This will change the news cycle and that will help Biden.
Probably the easiest 6 figure gig you can get. All you have to do is side with Kagan and the Wise Latina.
Mayor Pete and his cronies must be working the phones. Harris to the court and Buttigieg in as VP. While Pete is making sure his trousers have a sharp crease, the never Trumpers are cranking up the PR campaign.
A trans black female.
Now we know how Biden solves his Veep problem. Paging Hillary to become new Veep and initiate 25th.
Why is this a problem? A Dem president with a Dem Senate will get the justice he wants.
To salvage anything from the nomination, Republicans could give her the Gorsuch treatment and take the sharp edges off. Not that they should bear false witness, but sharp questioning over an extended period, followed by a unanimous vote against, might be the best that can be hoped for. It depends on whether the candidate deserves it, of course, but being a Democrat, she probably will.
I say the further left the nominee, the better for the GOP. The GOP senators can’t really stop whoever President * nominates. The “balance” of the Court doesn’t change, but someone even farther left than Sotomayor might (I say might) give Roberts and Kavanaugh pause before siding with the “libs.”
It also highlights the contrast between the Dems and the Reps right before midterms.
(Yes, I’m looking for any shred of hope. Why do you ask?)
Who must also be fat, disabled, and left-handed.
You mean differently abled and empowered by her own body image?
Na. I represent the reality-based community. But good use of the discourse of our oppressors there.
And your forgot about challenging dextronormativity.
I know people say it will be Kamala Harris to clear the way for the elevation a more effective president, but word on the street is that Hillary’s the shoe in, to clear the way for a more effective presidential candidate.
74-year-old Hillary to SCOTUS? WTH for???
Why would anyone consider either of them for SCOTUS? Hillary is a criminal — everyone knows it — the only difference is that unlike most criminals, she’s not in prison. And Kamala is as dumb as Biden, just a little more coherent.
It’s not going to be either of them.
I dunno, can we be sure that Kamala is any dumber than Sotomayor has shown herself to be?
Damnit! “challenging dextronormativity” I did miss that one.
Perhaps give her the Biden “Bork.”
Just a rumor started so that just about anybody else named seems reasonable by comparison.
If I am correct, you don’t have to be a lawyer to be on the Court. However, does Hillary still have her law license?
Not sure they can get through the confirmation process.
He’s stuck in a rut. That same combination worked wonders for finding his VP.
No, thanks to Trump.
I believe so on both counts.