2053

Not sure that matters here at this point. Kavanaugh is going to be on his heels if it even gets there.

2054

(That would be Democrats, doing something.)

2055

The GOP is insane not to pull the nomination. There is literally only one loss condition for them: delays. If they pull him, they easily have time to get someone in just as good/bad but less rape-y. Keeping him around just increases the sliver of a chance that the next Senate will pick the nominee. This is starting to resemble the tortured path/own goal to getting a Democratic Senator from Alabama.

I also feel that there is no way BOTH of the following two statements will be true:

  • Kavanaugh sits on the Supreme Court
  • Republicans keep control of the Senate

They need to pick which one they want (which should be an easy decision
)

2056

I agree. I was even going to frame it as a question for progressives here: “Which would you prefer more: get control of both houses of congress in November, but Kavanaugh confirmed
or lose the senate but Kavanaugh is pulled as a nominee?”

2057

Also, I wonder when parties will start nominating more women because of, you know, obvious advantages.

2058
2059
2060

Put me squarely in the both houses group. Because otherwise, we still get a conservative judge. But no other gains.

2061

To be super clear,

2062

I certainly didn’t know this until just now:

If I were a Senator this would disqualify Kavanaugh right there: if you only have nine lifetime appointees to represent a third of a billion people, you really don’t need two of them to have gone to the same high school, especially one as Inside-the-Beltway snobbish as Georgetown Prep.

(Why aren’t the “shake up the system” “fight the Deep State” “drain the swamp” Trump fans concerned about Trump’s two nominees coming from a school that’s basically a cartoon caricature of DC establishment privilege? Never mind, it’s a rhetorical question.)

2063

Also, Anne Applebaum was one year ahead of Cavanaugh at Yale. Doubt they knew each other – different crowds (and it’s a big school).

2064

Regarding the “lose the battle but win the war choice” you guys present: the chances of the Senate going Democrat are still only 1 out of 3 last I heard, so the Republicans may still go with the odds and ram this nomination through, figuring that, even if they lose the Senate in November, trying to impeach a Supreme Court Justice still takes 67 votes and that ain’t happening. OTOH, they probably do improve their already-decent chances of keeping the Senate by getting Trump to pull Kavanaugh and nominate another Federalist Society darling who will sail through if the GOP keeps the Senate, but unfortunately won’t be seated till 2019.

2065
2066

Another Senate term with a Republican majority? Or the two-ish decades remaining in Kavanaugh’s lifespan with a Supreme Court judge protecting the Trump administration from consequences for its corruption and abuses of power? That’s an easy choice.

-Tom

2067

Interesting implication of the new Yorker article, is that the new Yorker likely approached Grassley about this new stuff on Tuesday of last week, and his response was to try and rush the vote through.

2068

Which is why the GOP would be crazy not to choose option number three (a different candidate now before it’s too late
)

I hope they stick with Kavanaugh as long as possible because either he doesn’t get on the Court or they lose the Senate
 maybe both!

2069

It’s insane they’re focused on Kavanaugh when Gorsuch proved that anyone without insane baggage that isn’t shifty as fuck can get through without issue. Gorsuch was literally a stolen nomination and passed without much fuss.

Pick someone fucking else from the list.

2070

Remember however that the Dems mostly kept their powder dry fighting Gorsuch
 and they kept it dry precisely for the fight we’re witnessing right now.

2071

I mean it’s Avenatti, so big grain of salt.

2072

Hey I found the dumbest person in the country.