The Senate Majority Leader is shameless in his disregard for democratic norms—and for shame itself.
When the history of the lasting damage done to American democracy over the past three decades is finally written, Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, is going to have a leading role in the chronicles. (Except, perhaps, in Texas, where various Stalinist gomers and gomettes still hold sway over what young Gomer, Jr. will get out of his book larnin’.) McConnell will have earned this exalted place in the saga through his utter and completely shameless disregard for democratic norms and functions, as well as his utter and completely shameless disregard for, well, shame.
He rose in the Senate on Monday afternoon for his daily exercise in persiflage, touching on all the news of the moment. He came out firmly against hurricanes, floods, and opioid overdoses. Then he started in on the perils suddenly facing Judge Brett Kavanaugh and, somewhere in mountains of Greece, our old friend Clio, Muse of History—often referred to by her Marvel Superhero identity, The Proclaimer (!)—washed down half a bottle of Klonopin with three deep swigs of cheap local ouzo.
This is what McConnell told the Senate, via C-SPAN:
IT’S BEEN 70 DAYS, 70 DAYS SINCE THE PRESIDENT NOMINATED JUDGE BRETT KAVANAUGH TO FILL THE CURRENT VACANCY ON THE SUPREME COURT. FOR MORE THAN TWO MONTHS, THE SENATE HAS PORED OVER JUDGE KAVANAUGH’s PROFESSIONAL RECORD. WE HAVE REVIEWED THE 300-PLUS OPINIONS HE HAS AUTHORED WHILE SERVING ON THE D.C. CIRCUIT. MORE PAGES OF DOCUMENTS THAN HAVE EVER BEEN PRODUCED FOR A SUPREME COURT NOMINATION, MORE THAN FOR THE FIVE PAST NOMINATIONS COMBINED.
See? Right there, ol’ Mitch is in trouble with the truth. The “past five nominations” include that of Judge Merrick Garland, whose opinions the Senate declined to pore over and review, because Mitch McConnell decided that Merrick Garland would be disappeared as far as the Senate was concerned.
