McConnell's folly:

[Eyeball_Kid]

Confirming ACB BEFORE THE ELECTION is a big GOP mistake.

There are perhaps millions of GOP voters who have been hanging on to their Republican loyalty only because they want the USSC packed with so-called "conservatives."

With ACB on the Court as of today, GOP voters nationwide can breathe their sigh of relief, THEN STAY HOME ON ELECTION DAY! So many will have reduced motivation to go to the polling places and vote. Why bother when they got everything they wanted already?

This may very well translate into a larger GOP defeat than they ever thought possible. If McConnell were strategic, he'd have held the vote off until after the election to ensure that as many GOP votes as possible would be cast. It may make the difference between a switch of 10 Senate seats rather than 5.

But McConnell, at least this time, tossed strategic thinking out the window. His lack of forethought will end his career. If Biden wins and the Senate turns Dem, McConnell will likely retire. AND... his reckless maneuver to confirm ACB will backfire.

[Sherman A1]

1. Interesting theory

Don't think it will do much to suppress republican voters who had planned on voting.

[Eyeball_Kid]

8. Just common sense.

The drive to vote is diminished when you already got what you want.

GOPers already sense that Biden will win. The confirmation IS THEIR WIN. They’re done before the election.

[Sherman A1]

9. I don't see the SC seat as the end game

They have that and they want more and more. This is and ongoing effort. It may have a few sit out, but I don't see many doing so.

[Polybius]

15. Not really

In the mind of a right-wing idiot, they might say "Yay, he gave us another conservative! Now we have to vote for him in case another one retires in the next 4 years."

[Mike 03]

2. Yes. The Christian Nationalists got almost everything on their wish list so

far as the courts are concerned.

Now it's much easier for them to push through the rest of their agenda, which depends largely on the courts and less on actual legislation, although they will continue to put pressure on Republicans. IMO Republicans are as afraid of the Christian Nationalists, if not more so, as they are of a mean tweet from Trump.

(I learned this from Katherine Stewart's amazing book The Power Worshippers)

[Wellstone ruled]

14. Spot on.

Thanks for the post,spent five decades doing Sales and Service in Rural Minnesota,South Dakota,Iowa and parts of Wisconsin. The advent of the Moral Majority in the late 70's and Christian-O-Fascist type of Religious Groups grooming their members to run for School Board Positions and with the help of their membership,control the narrative and make sure their members vote thus securing a victory.

Next in their focus was City Councils and County Commissioners. Within two decades,they controlled vast swaths of counties at every level. And were able to launch their own National Political Party candidates. Usually Rethugs with the exception of a few Dino's.

Still stay in contact with several Business Clients in those Rural Areas. If you do not have the support of the local Wack Job Religious Group,you are crap out of luck winning a Political Campaign. Population shifts are a key for these events to have happened.

[Renew Deal]

3. Confirming her after will make her nomination seem illegitimate.

Not sure why they care about that.

[Eyeball_Kid]

10. There are down-sides to going either way.

It speaks to the lack of planning by the GOP that they are stuck with two painful choices. Sometimes political expediency has no upside.

[Qutzupalotl]

4. He might be seeing that they've lost the Senate anyway,

so might as well cash in what chips they can. The timing is bad, but possibly worse in the lame duck. Hard to say.

I agree that it will likely backfire. Conservatives will have no motivation to wait in long lines. Liberals will.

[Walleye]

5. I agree. I thought that all along. What have they got the campaign on now.

The Supreme Court has been practically their only argument for the last 20 years. They can’t exactly run on their record. Only time will tell

[Binkie The Clown]

6. Perhaps he's worried that he, himself. might not survive till after the election.

His health is a big question mark right now, and he might be panicking and trying to exercise as much power as he can while he can.

[Eyeball_Kid]

13. IMO, McConnell will retire if the Senate flips. n/t

[5X]

7. He knows they have lost all branches of government but the judiciary.

He is settling for that and knows he is going down.

[Eyeball_Kid]

11. Yep.

And yet the Dems have an effective answer to that. Expand the Court. As an alternative, there are two seats that can be vacated by way of impeachment. Or...Expand the court by two and impeach Kavanaugh for perjury. Done.

[crickets]

17. +1

[maxsolomon]

12. It won't "end his career". It caps it.

He re-made the Federal Judiciary and put shackles on the march of progress and justice that will outlive him by decades.

That accomplished, he's willing to return to obstructing. It worked under BHO, didn't it?

He won this battle. The war is not over.

[cry baby]

16. Within the CNN undecided voter panel for the last debate there was a

young man that said he was strongly pro life. He stated that since Barrett would be confirmed before he voted, he would be freed from voting for trump and could then vote for the better man - Joe Biden.

Just an anecdotal story to say that it’s possible that some of the one issue (abortion) voters might decide not to vote at all or maybe they might be like the young man on the CNN panel.

[UCmeNdc]

18. Time to fight back and take no prisoners.

[WyattKansas]

19. Moscow Mitch was afraid that their Republican pick/confirmation would stop after the election.

Especially if there was a President Elect (Democratic Party included) that had access to State Information and National Security to expose real facts that would slam on the brakes to anything tRUMP and Republicans were doing. If something was exposed that proved that tRUMP and Republicans were a Cabal working with the Russians or any other high crimes and misdemeanors that questioned their 'ruling decisions' to keep tilting everything in their favor were in jeopardy, so he had to force a bigger insurance policy on the Supreme Court to treat them kindly. Moscow Mitch doesn't give a damn about what comes later, he only cares about keeping the wins that he got to screw over the Democratic Party and the American People for decades.