The Supreme Challenges that Lie Ahead for President Biden – “The Sunday Political Brunch”

The Supreme Challenges that Lie Ahead for President Biden – “The Sunday Political Brunch”

The big item in politics this past week was the announcement that Supreme Court Associate Justice Stephen Breyer was retiring in June at the end of this court’s current term. Supreme Court appointments are among any president’s biggest responsibilities. And there could be implications as we go forward, as this is an election year. Let’s “brunch” on that this week.

 

“By the Numbers” – In theory, this doesn’t change a thing. At 83, Breyer was in the three-vote liberal court minority with Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. Biden is likely to pick a liberal-to-moderate Democrat, so the court’s 6-3 composition will hold steady. Let’s face it, with three appointments confirmed in one term, former present Donald Trump’s imprint on the court could last for decades. It is the single biggest, and most significant accomplishment of the Trump years.

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“Is Biden One-and-Done?” – Many people ask this question in terms of whether Biden will be a one-term president, but the same question needs to be asked about his Supreme Court picks. If they stay in relatively good health, none of the other eight justices may retire soon, and Biden would have the one, lone pick. Chief Justice Roberts is 67. Justice Clarence Thomas is the dean of the Court, and he is 73. The Trump appointees Kavanaugh, Gorsuch and Barrett are 56, 54, and 49, respectively. George W. Bush’s other appointee beyond Roberts, Justice Alito, is 71.

 

“Be Careful What You Wish For” – The Democrats, minus Sen Joe Manchin (D) West Virginia and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D) Arizona, are trying to get rid of the Senate filibuster rule. But guess what? Republicans already got rid of the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees when they were in power during the Trump years.  In other words, The GOP is now in the minority and has no way to block whomever Biden picks for the high court. So, the old saying, “Be careful what you wish for,” holds true. Democrats are in danger of eliminating a weapon they may need if they become the minority party after the November election.

 

“Hey Joe, Will You Vote No?” – I spent about 30-minutes with Senator Joe Manchin (D) West Virginia this week. Obviously, he has been the key “no” vote on several Biden initiatives, effectively killing them. So, I asked the Mountain State’s senior Senator, “If the president nominated someone too liberal, that did not match the values of West Virginians, would you be willing to vote, no?  Manchin responded, “I would be very happy to have somebody that’s going to be centrist as much as humanly possible. You know you have center-left and center-right and they usually all come to the middle…  Finding someone who is balanced is the most important thing we do.” So, Manchin said neither yes, nor no to my question. But he wants a centrist. Keep an eye on this!

 

“No Litmus Tests” – We’ve heard plenty of presidents say over the years that there would be no “litmus tests” for Supreme Court nominees. Supposedly that meant that positions on Roe v. Wade and abortion rights would not be a disqualifier from nominees on either side of the aisle. Baloney! Look, with a wink and nod, any president has a good idea of how a potential justice may vote. But there are surprises. President Ronald Reagan nominated Anthony Kennedy to the high court, perhaps thinking he might be the swing anti-Roe vote, but he wasn’t. President Gerald Ford put Justice John Paul Stevens on the high court, and he turned out to be one of the most liberal members. As Forrest Gump might paraphrase, “Supreme Court Justices are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get!”

 

“Kiss My Hiney” – Speaking of Manchin, weeks ago we reported a feud between him and actress-singer Bette Midler, who basically called Manchin’s fellow West Virginians a bunch of uneducated, backward, drug-addicted hillbillies. It even caused a stir in Rhode Island where Midler has been doing some filming. Well, it has now erupted into all-out war. Thursday night Gov. Jim Justice (R) West Virginia delivered his annual State of the State Address. Justice has a pudgy, but popular English Bulldog named, “Baby Dog!” At the end of his State of the State, Justice held up Baby Dog, turned her rear-end to the packed legislative chamber and said, “They told every bad joke in the world about us. And so, from that standpoint Baby Dog tells Bette Midler and all those out there, 'Kiss her hiney'" The Capitol erupted in boisterous laughter and applause. The pictures and quotes went viral!

 

“Build Back Bette Better” -- On Friday, Midler tweeted a picture of the event with the caption: “Here we can see a dog’s ass****. Right next to it is the butt of Jim Justice’s dog.” Midler also said, “Here are the state rankings of all the areas and agencies for which the so-called ‘governor’ of West Virginia, Jim Justice, is responsible. Judging from these rankings, I’d say his dog’s ass would make a better governor than him!” The graphic showed West Virginia scoring poorly in healthcare, education, and economy. To be continued!

 

“Biden’s Economic Bounce?” – President Joe Biden has been fighting bad economic news these past few months, which is never a good thing in an election year. Last week we talked about an inflation rate of 7 percent, which has not been that high in 40 years. Inflation, as I noted, cost Presidents Ford, Carter, and Bush I, a second term. It could be Biden’s Achilles heel. Well, this week other economic news was better. In the fourth quarter of 2021, the U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 6.9-percent, a rate that has not been that high since the 1980s. The problem is people don’t necessarily feel the economic growth rate in the short term. What they do feel is higher prices in the grocery store and at the gas pump, real tangible everyday effects that can sway a vote down the road!

 

Mark Curtis, Ed.D., is Chief Political Reporter for the seven Nexstar Media TV stations serving West Virginia, its five neighboring states, and the entire Washington, DC media market. He is a MINDSETTER™ contributing political writer and analyst for www.GoLocalProv.com and its affiliates.