We all know that the Senate GOP leadership is vowing to give the cold shoulder to Merrick Garland, President Obama’s pick to replace the late Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court. We also know that their stated reason for doing so–a supposed rule against presidents filling judicial vacancies late in their term–is a transparent lie. It is clear not just beyond reasonable doubt, but beyond ALL doubt that Indeed, Mitch McConnell himself all but admitted that the real reason he and his buddies are essentially throwing a tantrum on the Senate floor has nothing to do with the Constitution and everything to do with politics.
Well, we got more evidence of this yesterday. People for the American Way’s Right Wing Watch got its hands on an email blast from Americans United for Life, the group responsible for much of the pro-life/forced-birth movement’s legal strategy. The subject line made it very clear where this was going: “You Have The Power To Help Roll Back Roe v. Wade.”
Acting president and senior counsel Clarke Forsythe made no bones about it. He believes Scalia’s seat must be kept vacant in order to give a Republican president a chance to make that appointment–and presumably, that appointment would be the fifth vote to overturn Roe v. Wade.
“For more than 40 years, we pro-life Americans have been working to overturn the destructiveness of Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton, the twin cases that brought incredible devastation to mothers and their unborn children, making both vulnerable to the profiteering of a greedy abortion industry. With the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, the Supreme Court hangs in the balance today, making it vital that NO appointment to the high court occur until after the voters weigh in on Election Day.”
Forsythe goes on to say that the only reason Democrats are pushing for Garland’s confirmation is because they see a golden opportunity to “roll back the pro-life gains in courts and legislatures across the country.” If Garland is confirmed by the Senate, Forsythe warns, it could “crush democracy on the abortion issue” for the next 20 years.
AUL is one of the main components of the “Protect the Court” coalition, an alliance of forced-birth groups that wants to “stop a pro-abortion Supreme Court.” The alliance includes some of the usual suspects–the Susan B. Anthony List, the Family Research Council, and Priests for Life, among others.
Last week, Senate Judiciary chairman Chuck Grassley promised a conference call of representatives from these groups that Garland wouldn’t even get a hearing. Why? He has to keep “another liberal” from getting on the court in order to keep “reasonable restrictions on abortion” from being swept away. PFAW got a clip.
As I’ve told you on numerous occasions, when the religious right thinks we aren’t paying attention, they usually leave no doubt that they really want to trample on the rest of us. But even with this to consider, this email from Forsythe and Grassley’s statement on that conference call are absolutely staggering. Forsythe whines about democracy being crushed–and yet, doesn’t seem to have any problem with Garland not even getting a hearing.
We already knew that the members of this coalition and several other conservative groups put McConnell and friends on notice–Scalia’s seat must be kept vacant at all costs, even if it means losing the Senate. But with this announcement, you have to wonder if they’re even trying to hold the Senate anymore. After all, poll after poll shows that this tacky behavior could potentially send a number of Republican Senators in close races to the unemployment line. Further proving how far removed these guys are from reality, most polls show Donald Trump getting destroyed in a general election matchup. While Ted Cruz fares slightly better, his extreme positions on social issues will make it very difficult for him to get to 270.
We already knew that the Senate GOP’s claim that it’s merely protecting the Constitution is an elaborate charade. And this only adds to the evidence that it’s a charade.
