The Next Supreme Court Justice Should Be Named Obama
/With the passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, the time has come for President Barack Obama to make his third selection for the highest court in the land. Those Republicans who want to block the President's constitutional duty must not be as true to the US Constitution as they claim to be. If you are truly a "strict constructionist" then you can not believe politics takes precedent over the founding document. Maybe these so called "Constitution Conservatives" are really just a bunch of partisan hacks. The GOP Presidential field, and the elected republicans in D.C., really seem to think that the Constitution is not that valuable in governing the nation. It seems that they are all unfit to represent the people since there is no guiding document of law that the GOP believes in. We deserve people who believe in the Constitution to lead our government. The Republican Party has once again put their personal partisan politics ahead of settled law.
Antonin Scalia served on the US Supreme Court for nearly three decades. He was instrumental in giving voice to modern conservative philosophy. He was also instrumental in being the voice of exclusion to many US citizens. He did not want the US to confront climate change because he was not a scientist. He used antiquated, and hateful, religious views to deny rights to gays and lesbians. He believed that high money donors had more right in swaying political elections than people who were not quite as wealthy. He, along with four other Supreme Court Justices, stopped a legally mandated recount in the state of Florida during the 2000 Presidential Election. There was no legal, or constitutional, reason to stop the recount, yet Antonin Scalia felt like his personal political views took precedent over the law of the land. If you look at the Bush v. Gore decision, Justice Scalia and the majority say that their decision can not be used as precedent for any future similar cases. It is obvious that the conservatives on the court wanted to Bush to win, even if he had not. Antonin Scalia was the voice of the Supreme Court for an ideology that is living in the past. This is a philosophy that is doomed to be on the wrong side of history. The views Antonin Scalia brought the the US Supreme Court will be judged in the same ways the views of Henry Billings Brown (Plessy v. Ferguson) and Roger B Taney (Dred Scott v. Sandford). They will be judged poorly.
With the death of any high profile figure the media and public at large want to wait in passing judgement on that person's life. That is moronic. When someone like an Antonin Scalia passes, his work should be on display. It is naive, and insulting, to try and forget what harm Justice Scalia has brought to many Americans. We should never sweep under the rug the vile decisions of any person, much less a public figure. We need to remember but we do not need to dwell that long on the unfortunate tenure of Antonin Scalia, we need to look towards the future. The thing we should be focusing on is who will be the new justice of the US Supreme Court. That person should be named Obama.
First Lady Michelle Obama is an accomplished attorney. She has all the academic credentials the US Senate looks for in a Supreme Court nominee. She has a long paper trail and was a very successful lawyer before moving to the White House. Michelle Obama has a bright mind, and quick wit. She would be a huge asset to the high court. The problem is that the partisan hacks in the US Senate would lose their minds in trying to tear down a woman who is vastly more qualified than they are. No person deserves the vitriol, misogyny and racism that would be hurled at the First Lady by the Senate and the national media. She does not deserve the hassle. Someone else in her house is more than ready to take these anti-constitutionalists head on.
While Michelle Obama would be the best choice to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, there is another White House resident who could truly make history by being appointed to the high court. President Barack Obama has the resume to be the next justice of the United States Supreme Court. He is a constitutional scholar, former Illinois State Senator, US Senator, and two term President. He has the education, experience, and thirst to serve his country. Never before in the history of the United States have we had the opportunity to fill a Supreme Court vacancy with someone so qualified. The American voters have twice elected Obama by large margins. The public will and the resume makes is a no-brainer that President Obama should be the next Associate Justice.
There is the issue of President Obama being the sitting President. Could he actually nominate himself? The easy fix is for Obama to step down from the Presidency and let Vice President Joe Biden take the office for the remainder of the term. It would be a great way to honor Joe Biden for all of his decades of public service. The new President Biden could then nominate former President Barack Obama. Easy fix.
Now the US Senate would have their nomination, and the confirmation process can begin. We all know that having Barack Obama in front of a Republican dominated senate would not be an easy confirmation process. The obstructionists in the Senate would use the hearings to try and legislate the entire Obama Presidency. It would be a huge and pointless circus. There would be a zero percent chance that a vote would be taken on Obama's nomination within the year. The timing should not matter because the Senate Republicans have already said they are going to disregard their Constitutional mandate and will not allow a Supreme Court nominee a confirmation vote until a new president is inaugurated.
Why not let Obama go through the hearings with no hope of confirmation this year? Because this will absolutely destroy any Republican effort to take the White House and will severely hurt their down ticket races. The public will get a full view of the fringes in the GOP, and how they control the entire party. The Presidential field will be consumed by the confirmation process. President Obama is still way more popular than any national Republican figure. The attacks coming from the Senate, Fox News, Right Wing radio, and the GOP Presidential hopefuls will drive many voters away. The Democratic party can use the obstruction of the Republicans as further proof of the party who currently controls congress can not govern at all. Once the election is over, and the Republican have suffered their losses, the next President can go ahead and resubmit Barack Obama as a nominee for the Supreme Court. The next President will be a Democrat after the lunacy the country will see from a Republican party who spits on the true intentions of the US Constitution. It will be a cake walk for the Democratic party.
The passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was quite a shock, and a great loss for his family and supporters. The loss of the strongest conservative on the high court is a huge advantage to the Democratic Party. The President has the Constitutional duty to appoint a replacement. The Senate has a constitutional duty to vet and confirm this nominee. The first family has two members who could fill this vacancy magnificently. The GOP will continue to disrespect the US Constitution in order to serve an outdated political philosophy no matter who gets nominated. Barack Obama could once and for all fully expose the Republican Party hypocrisy by being put forward as the next Justice of the US Supreme Court. He would once again make history, and help the Democratic Parties electoral chances in 2016 more than he has in the previous eight years. It will be one of the biggest political fights in US history. Let Obama use his skill to once again frustrate and annoy the GOP. It is going to be epic.
RD Kulik
RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing. He originally was going to suggest his other host of the X Millennial Man be the next Supreme Court Justice. Ty said he was to busy complaining about his least favorite sports teams. Nominate yourself for great internet commentary by writing for SeedSing.