The Guardrails Have Failed

[orangecrush]

The conflict over Trump’s Supreme Court nominee exposed the fast-eroding institutional barriers to the president’s authoritarian instincts.

ADAM SERWER
OCT 5, 2018


"Whatever remained of the separation of powers within uniform Republican control of government melted away in the fracas over Kavanaugh’s confirmation. Senate Republicans abdicated their duty to oversee nominations by refusing to call the only witness to Ford’s allegations, Kavanaugh’s classmate Mark Judge, to testify publicly. The White House severely curtailed the FBI inquiry, making it unlikely to turn up evidence that Kavanaugh had lied under oath about his drinking or high-school behavior, despite one public report after another that showed his testimony to be false. The successful Trump administration effort to limit the investigation into Kavanaugh demonstrated that the stated commitments of Attorney General Jeff Sessions and FBI Director Chris Wray to resist political pressure in their enforcement of the law will crumble under sustained pressure. With his ascension to the Supreme Court, Kavanaugh will be able to make good on the threat of partisan vengeance he made in his testimony."

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.theatlantic.com/amp/article/572242/

[beachbum bob]

1. elections have conseguences

we had many who did not care

[orangecrush]

3. or who were suckered

by third parties.

[calimary]

2. Guardrails? Those just aren't in fashion anymore, I guess.

[orangecrush]

4. Action is required.

As the saying goes.

[Va Lefty]

5. Yep, we are going to a place we may not be able to return from

[orangecrush]

8. We will return

We are a 2/3 majority.

[marylandblue]

6. The Book, "How Democracies Die" makes this point

The guard rails aren't legal or institutional, they are by adhering to accepted unwritten norms. If one party starts successfully breaking the norms, then the legal and institutional barriers fail. That's why the 2018 election is so important. It's an opportunity to start restoring and updating those norms.

[orangecrush]

7. I hope we send a strong message

despite any attempted russian interference.