There is plenty to be alarmed about with Barrett, but her relationship with People of Praise — which is surely at least a mildly patriarchal organization and one that believes in contemporary prophecy — isn’t doing much to lessen the alarm.
Unrelated, but seems related
KevinC
6399
It’s at least adjacent to personal experience which is why I see it as menacing.
Timex
6400
The fact is, Barrett is unquestionably a competent legal mind, and qualified as a judge. She’s going to be confirmed.
I don’t think it’s going to serve anyone well by attacking her faith.
The slime here is the GOP at large, and McConnell specifically. I don’t think it’s going to do any good by having folks attack this woman, personally.
Nesrie
6401
We should leave the attacking of women to the actual justices, as history shows.
I would tend to agree. There’s just not a lot of upside to attacking Barrett’s religious beliefs, and it’s a dangerous door to open for a party that celebrates religious freedom the way the Democrats do.
This is ultimately a lost battle in a bigger political war. Make it a lost battle about the ACA and healthcare but cede the ground and hope the fight costs the GOP dearly in November.
So religion gets a pass even though it in all likelihood is part of what informs who she is and will inform how she decides cases on the court.
Got it.
RichVR
6404
That’s my fear. Goodbye Roe v Wade and ACA. Hello deaths.
Really, if we mean Democrats in power shouldn’t waste any time offending people by attacking her faith, then that’s fine and I agree. If on the other hand we mean she doesn’t belong to a kinda loony group and we ordinary citizens shouldn’t say she does, fuck that.
As for her being very well qualified for the Supreme Court, in what does that consist? That she’s been on the bench for…just over 3 years, having been put there by this same Trump in May of 2017? Because I have to say, that doesn’t impress me very much, sorry.
Timex
6406
You sure you want to go down that road, dude?
Yep.
Religion – especially Christian and Christian-approximate religion – practiced by white people has been sacrosanct in this country for a generation or two now. Regardless of her whackadoodle religious sect and how that affects her thinking, attacking her on that is going to seem personal and like a hit job and it’s going to piss off voters that Democrats don’t want to piss off.
Attacking Brett Kavanaugh because Kav was a raper was deemed too personal in 2018. And the Kavanaugh confirmation fight probably helped Republican senate candidates in November of 2018.
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There is nothing the Democrats can say or do that will derail this confirmation. Nothing.
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Knowing that, making the confirmation about an issue that is a winning issue for Democrats would seem to be the best possible choice when there are no good choices, no?
Nesrie
6409
Yeah imagine what would happen if someone approached Christians years ago and questioned them whether or not slavery was the religious and social good they claimed it was… or, you know, just approach it carefully. Religions do not get a pass simply because they label something as religious… including treating entire populations worse than their livestock.
Timex
6410
The smart move is to do what will actually help you electorally, because that’s what will actually give you power to enact the changes you want.
Attacking this woman’s religion won’t do that.
It may in fact be counterproductive to that end.
Also, I’m not sure that any of us actually know enough about her religious practices to pass fair judgement anyway. The presentation of that religion in the public eye at this point, could very likely be somewhat tainted by bias.
Also, if you really do want to open that door, expect to have it done to people of other faiths.
Nesrie
6412
Easier said when specific coups of specific religions aren’t the reason the people saying it lost their rights.
I mean seriously, I have no idea if her faith deserves specific scrutiny or not, but no, since religion is too often used as a weapon and also used as a means to just end a debate, you don’t automatically give an idea a pass because it’s tied to a religion. But you do have to approach it carefully, religion itself is not an enemy.
Glad we’re not like those Trump supporters, who fear what is different from them.
Psst: some of us think pretty much all religions are kinda whackadoodle.
Timex
6416
There are fairly mainstream Islamic views regarding a multitude of social topics, that most folks here would find pretty wrongheaded.
But i feel like folks would also reject attacking a Muslim for belonging to their faith, and rightfully so.
Or saying, for instance, that they couldn’t be a supreme court justice because they were Muslim. Because judges don’t simply rule based on their religious beliefs.
