“It’s called precedent,” the Senate Judiciary Committee chair said of violating the same rule that Republicans ignored to move forward with judicial nominees.
“It’s called precedent,” the Senate Judiciary Committee chair said of violating the same rule that Republicans ignored to move forward with judicial nominees.
Though tempted to view these breaches of precedent by Republicans in isolation, I have to remind myself that the reasons they wanted to do so and got away with it are systemic. I mean, years ago, some of these things might have resulted in pressure from their own constituents. The Republicans have been chipping away at everything for decades to sculpt the nation into a shape that enables them to act with impunity. You can trace the progression in Congress starting with, say, Newt Gingrich. It’s like an abusive sociopath overstepping boundaries little by little until they’re in complete control.
That said, there was a time when politics broke out in fist fights. Thinking long term, it may not always be like this. But we can’t expect a single election, or mere voting, to fix this.
You’re absolutely correct, they’ve been working hard at creating this situation. I think the left will need to get mean for anything to change, maybe this is a step in that direction.
Yep, it’s been the boiling frog for decades now. It’s surreal to compare 1970s Republican politician antics to what they’re doing now. Back then, much of their current bullshit would have outraged their constituency and the nation in general. It would be the headlines of every paper. Now their supporters cheer for it, the corporate news spins it in a positive light if they report on it at all, and many more progressive voters just tune it out.