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Liars for a Lifetime
Liars for a LifetimeI don’t like liars. I don’t like them when they’re elected to political office. And I surely don’t like them when they lie to land a lifetime appointment on the Supreme Court.
Yes, there’s come to be an old song and dance that Supreme Court nominees perform—Senators ask direct questions about world-altering legal precedents like Roe v. Wade and the nominees deliver clever answers meant to convey their respect for that precedent without ever saying what they really think. That’s the performance that we’re all supposed to just gloss over or accept as the reality of “how it is.”
In 2006, Amy Coney Barrett signed her name to a published ad from an anti-abortion group that has urged “an end to the barbaric legacy of Roe v. Wade and restore laws that protect the lives of unborn children.” Yet when questioned during her confirmation hearing last year, just before the 2020 election, she insisted, “I don’t have an agenda.” Earlier, when seeking a seat on the Court of Appeals, she claimed, “It is never appropriate for a judge to impose that judge's personal convictions whether they derive from faith or anywhere else.”
As for Brett Kavanaugh, when he wasn’t expressing his love for beer, shouting at US Senators or denying assault charges, he was asserting that Roe was “settled as a precedent” because it has been “reaffirmed many times over the past 45 years.” He got back-up from Maine Sen. Susan Collins, who committed to vote for him after a private meeting in which he told her that Roe is “settled law.”
And then there’s Neil Gorsuch, the first of the Trump nominees who was questioned about constitutional protections like abortion and marriage. “I have never expressed personal views as a judge on this subject,” he smugly insisted, “and that is because my personal views do not matter.” (Sen. Collins also was assured by Gorsuch in private about his principled commitment to precedent—and voted for him.)
So smooth. So self-assured. So comfortable lying about the truth of their convictions and their intentions once the opportunity arose.
Now we’re about to see the painful consequences of a world where liars lie and—despite the fact that 70 percent of Americans support abortion and reproductive rights—we all are expected to just take it. Of course, liars lie, what else would you expect? Aren’t we all just supposed to go along with the con artistry of the confirmation process, which after all is a job interview leading to a lifetime appointment on the highest court in the land?
Yes, there’s come to be an old song and dance that Supreme Court nominees perform—Senators ask direct questions about world-altering legal precedents like Roe v. Wade and the nominees deliver clever answers meant to convey their respect for that precedent without ever saying what they really think. That’s the performance that we’re all supposed to just gloss over or accept as the reality of “how it is.”
In 2006, Amy Coney Barrett signed her name to a published ad from an anti-abortion group that has urged “an end to the barbaric legacy of Roe v. Wade and restore laws that protect the lives of unborn children.” Yet when questioned during her confirmation hearing last year, just before the 2020 election, she insisted, “I don’t have an agenda.” Earlier, when seeking a seat on the Court of Appeals, she claimed, “It is never appropriate for a judge to impose that judge's personal convictions whether they derive from faith or anywhere else.”
As for Brett Kavanaugh, when he wasn’t expressing his love for beer, shouting at US Senators or denying assault charges, he was asserting that Roe was “settled as a precedent” because it has been “reaffirmed many times over the past 45 years.” He got back-up from Maine Sen. Susan Collins, who committed to vote for him after a private meeting in which he told her that Roe is “settled law.”
And then there’s Neil Gorsuch, the first of the Trump nominees who was questioned about constitutional protections like abortion and marriage. “I have never expressed personal views as a judge on this subject,” he smugly insisted, “and that is because my personal views do not matter.” (Sen. Collins also was assured by Gorsuch in private about his principled commitment to precedent—and voted for him.)
So smooth. So self-assured. So comfortable lying about the truth of their convictions and their intentions once the opportunity arose.
Now we’re about to see the painful consequences of a world where liars lie and—despite the fact that 70 percent of Americans support abortion and reproductive rights—we all are expected to just take it. Of course, liars lie, what else would you expect? Aren’t we all just supposed to go along with the con artistry of the confirmation process, which after all is a job interview leading to a lifetime appointment on the highest court in the land?
More: https://america.substack.com/p/liars-for-a-lifetime?s=r