Senate Democrats don’t get to make any requests for ‘kindness’ from Republicans
Zachary Faria
Video Embed
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) wants the GOP to show “kindness” to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and allow Democrats to switch her off of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He can save his thoughts on “kindness” for someone who cares.
According to Durbin, Feinstein is “in a delicate part of her life and her Senate service” and Republicans “should stand by her and give her a dignified departure” by allowing Democrats to replace her on the committee. Durbin is asking this not out of sympathy but out of selfishness, as Senate Democrats are now unable to push through President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees.
MCCONNELL RULES OUT HELPING DEMOCRATS REPLACE FEINSTEIN ON JUDICIARY COMMITTEE
Democrats have lost the ability to claim “kindness” as an excuse for anything when it comes to the Senate and judicial nominees. The smearing of then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh as a rapist, with no evidence whatsoever, made sure of that. Feinstein is the one who kicked that debacle off, and Durbin partook in it as well.
But Durbin’s request is ridiculous even if you ignore that. If Feinstein is unable to perform her duties, she can resign from the Senate. Evidently, according to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), “she’s hopeful on returning soon,” so all of this would be moot. And what kindness did Durbin show to give Feinstein a dignified departure when he allowed his colleagues to force Feinstein out of the committee’s top Democratic role so that he could replace her?
Then there is Durbin’s attempt at trying to invoke empathy among Republicans or tacitly threaten them. “Tomorrow this could happen to the Republicans,” Durbin said. That is true. But does anyone really think that, had this happened to Republicans in, say, 2018, Durbin and the Democratic Party would help Republicans facilitate a swap so they could continue confirming judges?
Again, Durbin and almost the entire Senate Democratic caucus attempted to destroy the life and reputation of Kavanaugh just to prevent him from being confirmed. The Democratic Party has done this in the Senate for decades, going back to the nominations of Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas. Durbin himself helped sink the judicial nomination of Miguel Estrada in 2001 for being Hispanic.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
If Republicans were in a similar spot as the Democrats now, Durbin and Schumer would be at the head of the charge to prevent Republicans from making a swap, boasting about how they were stopping “extreme conservative judges” along the way.
Senate Democrats sacrificed any claim to “kindness” long ago. Republicans are not obligated to bail them out over Feinstein’s absence or anything else. Feinstein can resign if her issues are so dire, or Senate Democrats can learn to live with the rules they’ve written in this game once again.