Oath of office

Let's see. Supreme Court nomination process - check.
What other Constitutional rights can I piss on?

Do you ever wake up in the middle night absolutely seething about the current state of affairs in the U.S.? That was me around 3 a.m. last night. Perhaps it was the chili I ate for dinner. . . or that I watched the first  20 minutes of the Republican debate before assuming the fetal position, covering my ears and chanting "La la la la la la." I don't know for sure. But I do know I've really got my knickers in a knot about this whole SCOTUS nomination debacle in the Senate.

While I try to keep this blog focused on happy things like rainbows, unicorns and salt water taffy, I really need to vent.

Mitch McConnell, Chuck Grassley and their yahoo partners in crime took an oath of office to defend the U.S. Constitution when joining the U.S Senate.  Instead, by obstructing the SCOTUS nomination process, they're wiping their feet on this revered document as if it were my backdoor welcome mat. I am almost certain the Constitution's fathers are spinning in their statesman-like graves.

So, fueled with a couple gallons of caffeine, I fired this off this morning. Anybody care to wager whether it actually makes it to Mitch McConnell's mailbox?

Sen. McConnell:

When you took your oath of office for the Senate you solemnly swore/affirmed that "I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God."

By blatantly announcing that Senate will not meet with nor consider a Supreme Court nominee until a new president is elected, you have broken this oath and should be ashamed. It confirms to me that you are no longer (never were?) a statesman, but an ideological puppet and obstructionist.

It is the President's AND Senate's constitutional responsibility to fill a vacant seat on the Supreme Court as soon as possible, and according to the SCOTUS Blog, the "historical record does not reveal any instances since at least 1900 of the president failing to nominate and/or the Senate failing to confirm a nomination nominee in a presidential election year because of the impending election."

Failure to do so impedes and delays the work of the Court, potentially affecting the lives of hundreds to thousands of Americans. It is our right as American citizens to have a fully functioning judiciary. Shame on you.

Live up to your oath. Don't hide behind statements Joe Biden made many years in the past; members of your own party have done the same. It's time to unravel the mess you've created with your dysfunctional, partisan "leadership." Guide the Senate through the Supreme Court confirmation process as our Constitution directs.

So there. I feel better now.

I think.

Seriously, folks, we need to care about this.

A lot.