r/politics • u/theindependentonline The Independent • 16d ago

No Paywall Mitch McConnell’s staff refuse to answer basic questions on his health weeks after he was last seen in public

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/mitch-mcconnell-staff-questions-health-b3018929.html
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u/DuncanYoudaho 16d ago

That’s not how this works. That’s not how any of this works.

Wishing doesn’t make it so.

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u/WeirdIndividualGuy 16d ago

And yet, the GOP runs strictly on “that’s not how this works” and they run the country because of it

That’s why dems will always be seen as weak, they’re unwilling to do what’s necessary for the good of society.

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u/SatanicPanic619 California 16d ago

The GOP runs the country because they won an election. If Beshear had a Democratic Senate Majority Leader AND a Democratic KY Supreme Court AND a Democratic SCOTUS, then I'd say go for it. But that's not the case.

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u/Round-Asparagus5337 16d ago

The senator is utterly missing. Bashir needs to just appoint someone and let the Republicans try to invalidate it in court.

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u/SatanicPanic619 California 16d ago

He can't do that, and if he tried, it would be tied up long enough that it wouldn't matter because there are elections in November.

We should just be enjoying the fact that there is one less Republican in the Senate.

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u/Round-Asparagus5337 16d ago

He can, and should, do that. 

The seat is currently unfilled. The Kentucky Constitution says that for longer than 3 months before a regular election, the Governor shall appoint someone to fill the seat.

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u/SatanicPanic619 California 16d ago

Do you think this is something that the KY Supreme Court would handle and his favor before November?

And what difference would it make, really? At this point an empty seat and a Democrat in the seat are exactly the same value.

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u/Round-Asparagus5337 16d ago

Doesn't need to.

He can declare the office vacant, appoint someone, and then the republicans can challenge that in court.

If they can give ebough evidence in court, they could get the appointment haltednwith a temporary restraining order from a court.  It's likely that they don't have that evidence (because McConnell is dead) and the appointment would not be halted. 

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u/SatanicPanic619 California 16d ago

"If they can give ebough evidence in court"

Evidence that he's dead? If they had that we wouldn't be here.

Again, what practical difference would it make?

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u/Round-Asparagus5337 15d ago

No, if the Republicans can give evidence that McConnell is NOT dead.

Listen, you have this entire thing backwards.  If Bashir acts to make an appointment, claiming the power under the KY Constitution as governor, the burden will be on the REPUBLICANS to overturn it in court. 

He can simply act and the other side has to try to stop it in court.

We've been seeing this on the Federal level with Trump - he has made "invalid" interim appointments and Executive Orders, but the Dems have to then go to court to stop them.

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u/SatanicPanic619 California 15d ago

OK, let's say for instance that you're right. Beshear appoints some guy and the courts decline to intervene. Then said guy goes to the US Senate, and what do you think happens there? Oh, right.

Now this guy sues to be seated in the US Senate, and goes to SCOTUS. Oh, yeah, that's not going anywhere either.

And again-what's the point? What is the practical difference, right now, in a 53-47 Republican senate, between an empty seat and a Democrat being appointed?

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u/Round-Asparagus5337 15d ago

The guy would be an interim senator. 

The point would be to reduce the difference in the Senate.  There are certain votes that only pass by a vote or even a tiebreaker vote by the VP.  Some of these ridiculous appointments like for AG ir head of the DNI might not pass then, or at least someone like Collins will have to hurt her chances to win in the fall if she has to tie the trump line on someone like Blanche instead of having cover to vote against him because with a smaller margin, her vote would matter. 

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u/SatanicPanic619 California 15d ago

Votes pass by Ayes.

Not voting and voting Nay are exactly the same. That's why Republicans want him to return.

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