What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[Valmy]

Meh, I never cared much one way or the other about the "investigation". Everything you need to know about whether or not he should be a SC justice we already knew.

He lied under oath, he came out and announced that he was a partisan first, a hater of Dems second, and a legal authority...well, not at all.

Anyone with an ounce of integrity or ethics would never vote to confirm him after the display he put on. Lucky for the Republicans, there isn't an ounce of ethical integrity to be found among those 51 senators, so he will certainly be confirmed.

Pretty much.

[Syt]

I'd be curious to see the transcript of the FBI interview of Mark Judge.

I would be willing to believe the FBI found no corroborating evidence of the Ford assault.  All the witnesses to the event already made their statements.

It is not credible that they found no corroborating evidence that BK did heavy drinking in school.  The public record is already overwhelming on that point. It would also mean Judge almost certainly perjured himself.

I thought the FBI wasn't permitted to inquire about his alcohol consumption?

[The Larch]

Trump is now claiming George Soros paid off the Kavanaugh elevator protestors.  So now he is adding anti-Semitic conspiracy theories to his big bag of nasty.

I've had it with fellow Jews who support this guy.  I don't care what he does about Israel - there are lines that can't be crossed.

I saw that Stephen Miller's former rabbi (I didn't know Miller was a jew) wrote an open letter expressing how appalled he was at his attitudes towards inmigration. Miller's uncle was also on tv expressing how hypocritical his attitude towards inmigrants and refugees is, given that his own family fleed what is now Belarus for the US in the early XXth century, and how this basically saved their lives.

[The Minsky Moment]

Syt, Eddie - I was responding to this.

FBI report is in. If I heard correctly on NPR, no evidence of sexual misconduct or excessive drinking.

Third hand account.

[Razgovory]

Trump is now claiming George Soros paid off the Kavanaugh elevator protestors.  So now he is adding anti-Semitic conspiracy theories to his big bag of nasty.

I've had it with fellow Jews who support this guy.  I don't care what he does about Israel - there are lines that can't be crossed.

Yeah, the George Soros Bullshit pisses me off.  What, are we taking our talking points from Iran now?

[Legbiter]

Meh, I never cared much one way or the other about the "investigation". Everything you need to know about whether or not he should be a SC justice we already knew.

He lied under oath, he came out and announced that he was a partisan first, a hater of Dems second, and a legal authority...well, not at all.

Anyone with an ounce of integrity or ethics would never vote to confirm him after the display he put on. Lucky for the Republicans, there isn't an ounce of ethical integrity to be found among those 51 senators, so he will certainly be confirmed.

Pretty much.

Yeah Lindsay Graham certainly looks confident. That's why they'll stick with Trump, they will get all their judges appointed. 

[Valmy]

They don't really need Trump to do that, though. Do they? I mean all he has to do is appoint the people.

But maybe his twitter-fu is the mojo they need with the unwashed masses.

[Tamas]

Trump is now claiming George Soros paid off the Kavanaugh elevator protestors.  So now he is adding anti-Semitic conspiracy theories to his big bag of nasty.

I've had it with fellow Jews who support this guy.  I don't care what he does about Israel - there are lines that can't be crossed.

Yeah, the George Soros Bullshit pisses me off.  What, are we taking our talking points from Iran now?

Uhm, not really. IIRC the alt-right started the Soros thing as an argument against Black Lives Matter, mostly. That's where Hungary got the idea and eventually built up the anti-Soros fight as the sole legitimisation of the regime. Since then, Soros has been "responsible" for everything from Georgian to Macedonian political troubles.

Not bad for a 90 years old guy.

[Camerus]

I must admit I am uncomfortable about the extent to which this issue has been presented in many influential places as being an issue of believing a woman in spite of the lack of evidence, or how the fact that Kavanuagh's background as a rich, white, male are reasons to smear and disqualify him. I understand it's not a criminal trial with the same need for standards of proof - but I still don't believe unsubstantiated allegations are reason enough to destroy someone's reputation and career. As a non-masochistic hetero white man - and as a centrist who's fairly cool to many progressive ideas - this aspect does give me pause.

On the other hand, as I said earlier, it's pretty clear he's lied about his past. It's also clear he's highly partisan and would therefore not be appropriate... and also not difficult to find a replacement for if that's all that matters. So I still am sticking by my original view that he shouldn't be confirmed.

More worrisome is that I also wonder what his elevation will mean for the stability of the republic. What happens when there's a decision where he's the deciding factor? Will Democratic states accept it and if not, what then?

[DGuller]

I think the odds of Supreme Court retaining its legitimacy are slim.  Either it gets packed when Democrats get in power, or it gets openly defied.  And if Democrats don't get back in power, then we're kind of fucked as a democracy.

[Barrister]

The one thing that gives me pause is that it has been clear from the very outset of the nomination that a majority of Democratic senators were going to vote against Kavanaugh no matter what - that the seat was "stolen", that they didn't want someone approved by the Federalist Society - and were going to use any grounds they could to oppose the nomination.  So I kind of understand where Kavanaugh's anger on the issue comes from.

I also understand the politics of it.  There's now not enough time before the election for Trump to nominate and then have confirmed another nominee.  And if the Dems get control the Senate it's hard to see them approve any Trump nominee.

And yeah - what does that mean for the USSC going forward?  Will judges only ever be nominated when one party controls both the Senate and the Presidency?  How legitimate will decisions be when they've seemingly dropped even the fig leaf of non-partisanship on both sides?

[The Minsky Moment]

The one thing that gives me pause is that it has been clear from the very outset of the nomination that a majority of Democratic senators were going to vote against Kavanaugh no matter what - that the seat was "stolen", that they didn't want someone approved by the Federalist Society - and were going to use any grounds they could to oppose the nomination.  So I kind of understand where Kavanaugh's anger on the issue comes from.=

Gorsuch was nominated for the "stolen" seat, was also big in the Federalist Society, even went to the same high school. He is just as right wing, arguably even more extreme. His confirmation, while opposed by most Democrats, was not very contentious.

Kavanaugh came under fire for reasons unique to him: his extraordinary role in the Clinton impeachment and the extreme positions he took back then, his total about-face on those very same issues during the Bush presidency, his candor issues in the early part of the confirmation process, the unprecedented and dishonest interview given to Fox news, the allegations made against him, and his unhinged, angry performance at that hearing.

[The Minsky Moment]

More worrisome is that I also wonder what his elevation will mean for the stability of the republic. What happens when there's a decision where he's the deciding factor? Will Democratic states accept it and if not, what then?

of course they will.  Nothing will happen.

[Barrister]

The one thing that gives me pause is that it has been clear from the very outset of the nomination that a majority of Democratic senators were going to vote against Kavanaugh no matter what - that the seat was "stolen", that they didn't want someone approved by the Federalist Society - and were going to use any grounds they could to oppose the nomination.  So I kind of understand where Kavanaugh's anger on the issue comes from.=

Gorsuch was nominated for the "stolen" seat, was also big in the Federalist Society, even went to the same high school. He is just as right wing, arguably even more extreme. His confirmation, while opposed by most Democrats, was not very contentious.

Kavanaugh came under fire for reasons unique to him: his extraordinary role in the Clinton impeachment and the extreme positions he took back then, his total about-face on those very same issues during the Bush presidency, his candor issues in the early part of the confirmation process, the unprecedented and dishonest interview given to Fox news, the allegations made against him, and his unhinged, angry performance at that hearing.

It's hard to say Gorsuch "was not very contentious".  Democrats filibustered his nomination - which resulted in the "nuclear option" of eliminating the filibuster.  Only 3 Democrats voted to confirm Gorsuch.

Democrats have gotten more traction in opposing Kavanaugh for some of the reasons you mentioned, but they were still just as opposed.   And the only Democrats that voted in favour were Democrats from deep red states that Trump had easily won.

[OttoVonBismarck]

The real question is what happens if Democrats really do take control of government at some future date. Meaning Congress + White House, and start to say, create a public option for healthcare and are struck down by pre-New Deal Lochner court type opinions. I could really see stuff getting nuclear then, especially if the Dems are being ran by the leftist firebrands. By nuclear I mean actual court packing or even outright rejection of the court's authority to strike down desired laws.

Aside from impeachment there is no counter really to an executive who just refuses to abide a Supreme Court order, and if the order is seen as political and invalid then the support for impeachment won't exist.