<p>Considering the stature of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the American firmament – and the particular affection she received from the political left, it is surprising to see how fast the elitist news media has tossed that last shovel of dirt on the casket in order to get on with the political narratives.</p>
<p>While there were a few minutes here and there in funereal remembrances of this liberal icon, the media was myopically obsessed with the political analysis associated with her death. It consumed the morning broadcasts. Some of those talking heads advised that they should be remembering her life and legacy at this moment –even as they deflected to the political intrigues. Even President Trump was more reserved and more respectful in his initial public comments.</p>
<p>It is what Draconian power-grabbing measures the Democrats are threatening if Republicans exercise their constitutional right to nominate and confirm a new justice for the Supreme Court that is of central concern. The specifics were laid out by a number of Democrat politicians and activists.</p>
<p>Attorney Neal Katyal &#8212; a legal analyst and mainstay anti-Trumper for MSNBC &#8212; went beyond the obvious Democrat demand that Republicans allow the Ginsburg seat to be filled by “the next President.” He declared that if Republicans were to succeed in seating a new justice before Inauguration Day, the Democrats “would have every right” to increase the size of the high court to 15 members – or even 17.</p>
<p>In a bold move to lock in the power of the left, over the nation’s highest court, Democrats would summarily appoint 6 to 8 new left-wing justices in one fell swoop. There would be no consideration to balance. It would be the heinous act of authoritarianism.</p>
<p>In addition to packing the Supreme Court, the broader game plan was laid out by MSNBC’s Joy Reid. She called on Democrats to use their potential control of the White House and Congress to immediately grant statehood to the District of Columbia and Puerto Rice – essentially adding four more Democrats to the Senate. In addition, they would abolish the filibuster and the super-majority rule for certain votes – removing minority rights. That would take us further down the road to an elitist tyranny.</p>
<p>Reid’s guest, Hawaii Senator Mazie Hirono assured the MSNBC host that Democrats are, indeed, considering all those drastic options in their effort to stop a Trump confirmation – or to visit retribution if he is successful in seating a new justice.</p>
<p>Hirono accused McConnell and Republicans of ignoring the rule-of-law even though the LAW is on McConnell’s side. She provocatively claims that the Republicans are about to “steal” yet another Supreme Court seat referring to the Neil Gorsuch confirmation. In fact, the law is clear. and there is no stealing going on. Just hardball politics.</p>
<p>When a Supreme Court seat is vacant, it is the responsibility of the President to nominate a replacement and the Senate to confirm. There is no Biden Rule in the Constitution that prevents the President and the Senate from fulfilling their constitutional duties in a presidential election year.</p>
<p>The Democrats dangerous threats – promises, if you will &#8212; are not new ideas. Democrats have spoken longingly about each of these moves in the past. But putting them in a package to gain essentially one-party rule in Washington – as they have achieved in many cities and even a few states – would be the greatest threat to America’s constitutional freedom since the British last attempted to reclaim the colonies in the War of 1812.</p>
<p>It may come as a surprise to many – that the number of Supreme Court justices is not prescribed in the Constitution, but a matter of legislation. The number can be changed by a simple majority of Congress – and it has in the past. At one time, there were only six justices on the Supreme Court. The number nine has been in place since 1869. Only once since then was that number threatened with change –and that was when President Franklin Roosevelt attempted to “pack the court” with several New Deal-friendly justices. Public outrage ensued and FDR was ultimately rebuffed by his own Democrat-controlled Congress. This time America would not be so lucky by having such principled Democrats in Congress.</p>
<p>I have long proposed a constitutional amendment to fix the number at nine. The Democrats’ current threat makes such a proposal that much more compelling.</p>
<p>The left’s response to a Trump nomination may extend beyond the halls of Congress. Abortion activist Nancy Northup went so far as to say that the people must rise in opposition. She was not referring to the upcoming election, but to civil protest of the kind that inevitably leads to violence in the streets – the left’s usual rule-or-riot strategy.</p>
<p>If there is no other compelling reason for the people of America to re-elect President Trump, the Democrats&#8217; unofficial platform for expanding their power should be sufficient. Every other issue pales by comparison.</p>
<p>So, there ‘tis.</p>