SCOTUS thread

[Tony Stark]

Have you forgotten about Manchin and Sinema? The latter was an elephant who showed up at work dressed in a donkey suit. At best, because of Sinema, the real Senate split was 49/50 plus the V.P. which made it a 50/50 stalemate. If the Democrats get a real majority, yes, then they could do some of the things you want.

We would also need a president that supported ending the filibuster and adding to The SC,which Biden does not.

 

[piezoe]

Domestic policy knowingly harmful to foreigners is extremely subjective.Some would say helping Ukraine is knowingly harmful to foreigners as it could cause nuclear WWIII with Russia.

But this is absurd logic. By this reasoning any crackpot can get want they want just by brandishing nuclear weapons. There is a well accepted answer to such nuclear extortion. It is well understood. It's called "mutually assured destruction." Anyone who uses them is assuring their own destruction. This is the reason the U.S. maintains a nuclear arsenal.

Mutually assured destruction as worked flawlessly to keep the world safe from nuclear weapons being used again. We won't ignore Putin's threats of course. So far, our intelligence services have been amazingly accurate re Russian plans. (They Russians have reportedly planted explosives at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station that they occupy. This is a far more realistic concern then any threat of nuclear weapons.) We have been clear in our messaging to Putin, a specialist in brinksmanship. He knows what will happen if he uses nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Therefore he won't use them. Of course, people can go absolutely bat shit crazy. No real danger there either, because no one person can obtain, deploy and detonate a nuclear weapon. We have plenty of real threats to worry about without being afraid of our own shadow.

 

[piezoe]

We would also need a president that supported ending the filibuster and adding to The SC,which Biden does not.

I believe his opposition to returning to the standing filibuster is a major flaw in Biden's reasoning, but fortunately Biden doesn't have any real say re Senate rules. They are not subject to veto! We all have to get out and vote in Democrats in both Houses then real progress can be made.

As of the recent decision by the Supreme Court to hand down a ruling on a case brought to the Court fraudulently by the Plaintiffs, I am now of the opinion that those justices who have failed to recuse themselves from cases brought before the Court where they had close personal relationships to litigants should either be impeached and convicted, or else the Court must be expanded to neutralize their influence on the Court.

The case I mention, is perhaps the worst transgression that has ever occurred in our Supreme Court, and yet Roberts did absolutely nothing to stop the fraudulently obtained decision from going into effect. Add to this that Gorsuch is on the Court because McConnell violated his duty to uphold the Constitution, and Kavanaugh committed perjury* during his confirmation hearing, and we have a Court that is irredeemably flawed.
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*Not referring to the sexual assault accusation here, which was bad enough, but something else.

 

[Tony Stark]

But this is absurd logic. By this reasoning any crackpot can get want they want just by brandishing nuclear weapons. There is a well accepted answer to such nuclear extortion. It is well understood. It's called "mutually assured destruction." Anyone who uses them is assuring their own destruction. This is the reason the U.S. maintains a nuclear arsenal.

Mutually assured destruction as worked flawlessly to keep the world safe from nuclear weapons being used again. We won't ignore Putin's threats of course. So far, our intelligence services have been amazingly accurate re Russian plans. (They Russians have reportedly planted explosives at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station that they occupy. This is a far more realistic concern then any threat of nuclear weapons.) We have been clear in our messaging to Putin, a specialist in brinksmanship. He knows what will happen if he uses nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Therefore he won't use them. Of course, people can go absolutely bat shit crazy. No real danger there either, because no one person can obtain, deploy and detonate a nuclear weapon. We have plenty of real threats to worry about without being afraid of our own shadow.

He won't use them as long as he has power.If his power is threated MAD no longer applies to him.

 

[Tony Stark]

I believe his opposition to returning to the standing filibuster is a major flaw in Biden's reasoning, but fortunately Biden doesn't have any real say re Senate rules. They are not subject to veto!

Of course he does.It was Obama who pushed Harry Reid to end the filibuster for federal judges.

 

[Tony Stark]

But this is absurd logic. By this reasoning any crackpot can get want they want just by brandishing nuclear weapons. There is a well accepted answer to such nuclear extortion. It is well understood. It's called "mutually assured destruction." Anyone who uses them is assuring their own destruction. This is the reason the U.S. maintains a nuclear arsenal.

Mutually assured destruction as worked flawlessly to keep the world safe from nuclear weapons being used again. We won't ignore Putin's threats of course. So far, our intelligence services have been amazingly accurate re Russian plans. (They Russians have reportedly planted explosives at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station that they occupy. This is a far more realistic concern then any threat of nuclear weapons.) We have been clear in our messaging to Putin, a specialist in brinksmanship. He knows what will happen if he uses nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Therefore he won't use them. Of course, people can go absolutely bat shit crazy. No real danger there either, because no one person can obtain, deploy and detonate a nuclear weapon. We have plenty of real threats to worry about without being afraid of our own shadow.

Just decisively losing the war to Ukraine could be too much embarrassment for Putin and some hardliners to take.

Putin is also rumored to have health problems.MAD doesn't scare a person who knows they don't have long to live.

 

[piezoe]

Just decisively losing the war to Ukraine could be too much embarrassment for Putin and some hardliners to take.

Putin is also rumored to have health problems.MAD doesn't scare a person who knows they don't have long to live.

All of this is true, but nevertheless it is impossible for Putin alone to deplore a nuclear weapon. The probability of everyone in Russia going bat shit crazy simultaneously is, by any realistic measure, virtually zero.

 

[piezoe]

Of course he does.It was Obama who pushed Harry Reid to end the filibuster for federal judges.

The President can not overrule the Senate re Senate rules. The Senate makes their own rules, the president can express an opinion, but they can't stop a rule they don't like. If the President had the power to control Senate rules, Gorsuch would not be on the Court.

 

[Tony Stark]

All of this is true, but nevertheless it is impossible for Putin alone to deplore a nuclear weapon. The probability of everyone in Russia going bat shit crazy simultaneously is by any realistic measure virtually zero.

Putin alone cant do it,but there has always been hardliners in Russia that supported all out war with The US.If Putin has a few of those on his side they can launch.

 

[Tony Stark]

The President can not overrule the Senate re Senate rules. The Senate makes their own rules, the president can express an opinion, but they can't stop a rule they don't like. If the President had the power to control Senate rules, Gorsuch would not be on the Court.

The President can not overrule the Senate rules,but he can push the Senate leader to do it for him,as Obama did with Reid and ending the filibuster on federal judges.Reid would not have done that if Obama was against it.