(09-19-2020, 10:29 AM)mikesez Wrote: The whole process of adding judges to the supreme Court and to lower courts is definitely one of the weak points of our republic.
A well designed republic should not face a constitutional crisis just because someone died.
Before 2016, the rules were that there are nine supreme Court justices, and the president gets to nominate a new Justice whenever one dies or retires, and that the Senate would give that person a fair hearing, and that some members of both parties would vote to confirm him, unless he was some kind of monster.
Mitch McConnell decided to change these rules in 2016.
We know the Democrats want to return the favor, and pack the court, the next time they hold the White House in both houses of Congress. They will expand it to at least 11.
They will hold this kind of power again, it's just a matter of when, not if.
What we need is for the House, and Senate, and president to come together on some kind of compromise, now, while both parties have leverage, so that deaths which no one can control or predict don't become crises in the future.
What I propose below can be done by a simple act of congress, no constitutional amendment needed:
Instead of packing the court, create like a second string court that is pre-approved to take over seats on the supreme Court as they are vacated. Instead of letting the number of justices that a president gets to appoint be determined by the angel of death, limit it to a predetermined number, like one per term. If the court already has nine, put the new guy on the second string court, but first in line for the next seat.

Nice sentiment, but that will never happen. McConnell and Pelosi have turned this thing into a "peeing contest." (I don't wanna get warned for a certain word here.) The days of Democrats and Republicans coming together and compromising on ANYTHING, is a thing of the past. They have proven this time and time again. It's all about power and platforms. This is why I loathe politics. It used to be about compromising for the good of the country. Now it's just about who can gain enough control to shove their own agendas down America's throat.

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