Now more than ever, we can win this fight
The death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg has come at a critical time. We all know this. Though Mitch McConnell has proven to be the amoral piece of rotting feces we all knew he was, he will still have a few hills to climb in order to get another conservative judge on the Supreme Court.
The first hill is convincing cowards like Susan Collins that voting for the new Justice won’t kill their political careers. So, while McConnell diddles with these strands of limp spaghetti, he’s also running against the clock. The new Senate gets sworn in January 3rd, 2021, and it’s a good bet he won’t have a Republican majority at that point. He’s got to act quickly.
There are delay tactics the Dems can use over the hearings in order to drag out the proceedings. If there were a cohesive majority of Republicans in the Senate, these delays could be overcome by the deadline. But so much is at stake, so many are unsure of their position, it’s hard to predict a slam dunk right now.
But let’s go to worst case scenario. They seat an arch conservative and immediately attack Roe v. Wade and Obamacare. Take a deep breath. Our country is first and foremost a democracy. Your vote matters. If these acts are so repugnant to the majority of voters, they will not stand. Congress will up the number of judges; Congress will reauthorize another version of Obamacare; Congress will enact legislation in order for the people’s wishes to be fulfilled. It can be contested time and time again all the way to the Supreme Court, but in the meantime, legislation stands.
Yes, this process will take time. Lots of damage has been wrought. But in the end, good people will act. Right now, take comfort in the fact that most of America is full of good people and they will vote. If there is one thing we can all take from the legacy of the great RBG, it’s to never take this powerful right for granted ever again.
TR Kenneth is the author of the thriller, A ROOM FULL OF NIGHT. You can read all about her at trkenneth.com and on Twitter