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The SCOTUS confirmation hearings are showing us exactly who Republicans are
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The SCOTUS confirmation hearings are showing us exactly who Republicans are

They'd love to turn back the clock... and the press wants to help them.

Parker Molloy
Mar 24, 2022
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The SCOTUS confirmation hearings are showing us exactly who Republicans are
www.readtpa.com

Against my better judgment, I decided to tune into the Senate confirmation hearings on Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. It was… well… exactly what I thought it’d be.

Was there racism? Oh yes, there was. Were there “questions” (questions during these hearings tend to be a bit more in the “actually, I have more of a comment than a question…” variety) that signaled Republican plans for not only abortion but also LGBTQ rights. So that’s… fun,

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I guess?

Right off the bat, you had the official Twitter account of the GOP tweeting a GIF of Jackson. In it, her initials, “KBJ,” were crossed off and replaced with the letters “CRT.” This was meant to signify that Jackson was the embodiment of the boogeyman Republicans have been calling “critical race theory.” I’m sure that didn’t have anything to do with the fact that she’s Black. Sure, sure, sure. Right, right, okay.

Twitter avatar for @GOP
GOP @GOP
gop.com/rapid-response…
Image
2:52 PM ∙ Mar 22, 2022
1,550Likes470Retweets

During day two of the hearings, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) made abundantly clear what Republicans are going to target after they finish dismantling the right to abortion: marriage equality.

Cornyn repeatedly compared the court’s 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage across the country, to Dred Scott v. Sandford, an 1857 Supreme Court ruling that stated that enslaved people were not citizens of the United States and should therefore not be provided with the rights and protections of citizens. By making this comparison, Cornyn was very clearly trying to argue that Obergefell was wrongly decided, as Dred Scott was, and should be overturned.

Twitter avatar for @Hegemommy
Jessica Mason Pieklo @Hegemommy
Cornyn refers to "traditional marriage" and wants Judge Jackson to note that marriage is "religious" Y'all it's fully on for overturning Obergefell Cornyn is letting us all know as loudly and clearly as he can
4:01 PM ∙ Mar 22, 2022
1,590Likes508Retweets

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Twitter avatar for @Hegemommy
Jessica Mason Pieklo @Hegemommy
As a journalist marriage equality is one issue I covered all through the lower courts through the Supreme Court eventually deciding Obergefell and this is an amplification even by Cornyn I cannot stress this enough
4:02 PM ∙ Mar 22, 2022
384Likes64Retweets
Twitter avatar for @Hegemommy
Jessica Mason Pieklo @Hegemommy
That the SENIOR SENATOR from TEXAS where they still have a zombie marriage equality opt-out should alarm all of us. Republicans intend to break up queer families.
4:03 PM ∙ Mar 22, 2022
544Likes126Retweets
Twitter avatar for @digby56
digby @digby56
If people are confident that the issue of marriage equality is settled law, they really should listen to John Cornyn's questions. He's subtly comparing it to Dred Scott. Or note what's happening with Roe.
4:06 PM ∙ Mar 22, 2022
198Likes64Retweets
Twitter avatar for @ElieNYC
Elie Mystal @ElieNYC
Cornyn: Marriage is not mentioned in the Constitution Jackson: It is not Cornyn: And freedom of religion is Jackson: It is. ... His point seems to be that religious people have the right to deny the CONTRACTUAL right to marry and... that's just wrong.
4:03 PM ∙ Mar 22, 2022
2,378Likes320Retweets

And then you had Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) arguing against Griswold v. Connecticut, a 1965 ruling that overturned a state law criminalizing birth control.

As Dean Obeidallah notes in a piece he wrote for MSNBC, Griswold is the basis of the idea that we have a “right to privacy” in the U.S. Griswold is the foundation for SCOTUS rulings on marriage equality (Obergefell), abortion (Roe), and anti-sodomy laws (Lawrence v. Texas).

Twitter avatar for @DeanObeidallah
(((DeanObeidallah))) @DeanObeidallah
GOPers like Marsha Blackburn want Griswold v. Conn overturned. Why? That guaranteed access birth control PLUS it's key case in SCOTUS decisions they want to overturn: Roe v Wade, marriage equality+ striking down laws that criminalize being gay. My @MSNBC
msnbc.comWhy Republicans want to roll back Americans’ ‘right to privacy’The GOP is telling us exactly what it plans to do if not constrained by constitutional safeguards. It is not good.
12:00 PM ∙ Mar 24, 2022
93Likes47Retweets

Blackburn also tried to catch Jackson in a “gotcha” about trans people, asking Jackson to define the word “woman.” Blackburn asked this because the GOP goal is to create legal definitions of “man” and “woman” that exclude trans women in the definition of “woman” and trans men in the definition of “man.” Why? To create specific anti-trans carve-outs in nondiscrimination laws.

Twitter avatar for @Esqueer_
Alejandra Caraballo 🏳️‍⚧️🇵🇷 @Esqueer_
Marsha Blackburn going on a transphobic tirade while claiming to defend women is laughable. She just called to overturn Griswold v Connecticut which would allow states to ban birth control. She doesn't give a fuck about women.
2:03 AM ∙ Mar 23, 2022
438Likes94Retweets

Define woman? One thing anti-trans people like to do to argue that trans women don’t actually belong to the category “women” is to point to the dictionary definition. “Ah ha! Adult female person!” they’ll say as they point to Merriam-Webster.

Okay, but then if you follow along to the definition of “female,” used here as an adjective as it was in the definition above, you get this.

Definition 1a includes the word “typically,” which makes clear that there are exceptions to that definition. Definition 1b lists one of those exceptions, which includes trans women. Here’s where the same people who point to the dictionary as the end-all, be-all of definitions will stomp around arguing that the definition isn’t right, isn’t complete, or is “woke” (another word that gets tossed around quite a bit without actually being defined).

My point in all this is that it’s a silly question to ask during a Supreme Court nominee’s hearing because language and definitions are socially constructed. Nobody is arguing that trans women are the exact same as cisgender (non-trans) women. There are quite obviously some major differences! It’s okay to acknowledge that. But I digress… The more important takeaway here is that this attempt to attack trans people is about a much larger Republican effort to take away rights and legal protections from trans people, gay people, bi people, lesbians, women, people of color, and non-Christians. So even if you’re one of those people who think trans people are icky and you find yourself siding with Tucker Carlson on this topic, I hope you’ll consider that you’re helping him (and others on the right) set the stage for an attack on your rights, as well.

Meanwhile, Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) called for allowing states to criminalize interracial marriage.

Not part of the hearing, but related. Braun was being interviewed by a local reporter when he was asked about his opposition to court rulings that Republicans believe “invented” rights. Griswold is one of them. Roe is another. Lawrence is yet another. Obergefell, etc.

And then he was specifically asked about Loving v. Virginia, a case that found that a state’s decision to outlaw interracial marriage violated the 14th amendment. His response was to agree with the premise that “the issue of interracial marriage” should be left “to the states.”

Twitter avatar for @HeartlandSignal
Heartland Signal @HeartlandSignal
REPORTER: "You would be okay with the Supreme Court leaving the issue of interracial marriage to the states?" SEN. MIKE BRAUN (R-IN): "Yes. If you are not wanting the Supreme Court to weigh in on issues like that, you are not going to be able to have your cake and eat it too."
9:00 PM ∙ Mar 22, 2022
4,133Likes2,033Retweets

Braun tried to walk it back after realizing exactly what he said, lying about not understanding the question, which specified that this was about the issue of interracial marriage.

Oh, and then there was Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX)’s obsession with books about racist babies and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO)’s repeated and baseless insinuations that Jackson was somehow pro-pedophile.

Just as Republicans decided to call anyone opposed to the Florida bill outlawing discussion of LGBTQ families “groomers” and have spent years insinuating that trans people are “bathroom predators,” this is the latest baseless attack. There’s nothing to suggest that Jackson is somehow “pro-pedophile” or “soft on pedophiles” or anything of the sort. But maybe the call is coming from inside the house.

Twitter avatar for @ZackFord
Zack Ford @ZackFord
"It’s a stunningly inflammatory charge, reminiscent of conspiracy theories such as QAnon or Pizzagate, which posit that prominent liberals are part of a vast ring of pedophiles." @imillhiser articulately takes down Sen. Josh Hawley:
vox.comJosh Hawley’s latest attack on Ketanji Brown Jackson is genuinely nauseatingHawley’s going to a place that decent people have the good sense not to go.
5:55 PM ∙ Mar 18, 2022
43Likes22Retweets
Twitter avatar for @therecount
The Recount @therecount
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson takes a moment to gather her thoughts after Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) asks her if she believes babies are racist.
7:02 PM ∙ Mar 22, 2022
4,282Likes631Retweets

The hearings have been a total and utter shitshow. Anyone who thinks that Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and Matt Gaetz (R-FL) represent the “fringe” of the Republican Party are deluding themselves.

This is just who they are. All of them. There’s a reason Sen. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has been trying to get his GOP colleagues to stay quiet about what they actually believe in agenda-wise. It’s because this is it: absolutely off-the-wall bonkers nonsense that will gut the legal protections of millions of Americans while shouting conspiracy theories.

My former Media Matters colleague Andrew Lawrence posted this joke that is… sadly a pretty accurate reflection of what actually happened:

Twitter avatar for @ndrew_lawrence
Andrew Lawrence @ndrew_lawrence
Republican line of questioning to a Supreme Court nominee - Is it racist against white people to teach kids about slavery - On a scale of 1-10 how much do you love Jesus - Why haven't you proven you're not a pedophile - Do you agree w transphobia
2:34 AM ∙ Mar 23, 2022
5,828Likes1,101Retweets

Our only real hope is for the press to cover these right-wingers as the extremists they are… In that case, we’re screwed.

This is an actual headline from The Washington Post. JFC.

If you haven’t been watching the hearings, you might be under the impression that things were merely “heated” or that Jackson “sparred” with Republicans. The overwhelming majority of Americans will never know just how extreme this party is because mainstream news outlets will continue to soften their images in print.

Here are some examples of people calling out some of the bad coverage:

Twitter avatar for @jayrosen_nyu
Jay Rosen @jayrosen_nyu
That's just it: a standing imperative to SOUND neutral distorts your report, but it's a form of bias that pushes toward the middle, rather than the ends of the spectrum. People started to use the term "normalization" for that kind of effect. Via @GRobLewis
Twitter avatar for @JRubinBlogger
Jennifer 'I stand with Ukraine' Rubin 🇺🇦🇺🇦 @JRubinBlogger
here is where the MSM totally fails. "tense" questioning? no, bullying, interrupting, rude, overbearing. Describe what you SEE not what sounds neutral.
4:56 PM ∙ Mar 23, 2022
7Likes2Retweets
Twitter avatar for @MattNegrin
Matt Negrin, HOST OF HARDBALL AT 7PM ON MSNBC @MattNegrin
Local news is dumbasses. But even national news: NBC—"defending her sentencing record" CBS—"Republicans pointed to her sentencing record in child pornography cases" ABC—"allegations she let child porn offenders off the hook" CNN—"child pornography was another contentious issue"
3:51 PM ∙ Mar 23, 2022
179Likes54Retweets
Twitter avatar for @_cingraham
Christopher Ingraham @_cingraham
NYT: racial overtone CNN: racial undertone Politico: racially charged WaPo: racially tinged
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4:03 PM ∙ Mar 23, 2022
822Likes309Retweets
Twitter avatar for @_cingraham
Christopher Ingraham @_cingraham
Remember two years ago when the AP was like "you gotta stop using all these weasel words for racism" and all the Serious Journalism People were like "Yes, we Must Do Better?" Ah well.
Twitter avatar for @APStylebook
APStylebook @APStylebook
Avoid using the vague phrases racially charged, racially motivated or racially tinged to describe situations in which race is or is alleged or perceived to be a central issue, but that do not meet the definition of racist or racism.
4:07 PM ∙ Mar 23, 2022
509Likes159Retweets

Today’s tunes:

“Let’s Not Shit Ourselves (to Love and to Be Loved)” by Bright Eyes

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Very much not fun.

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The SCOTUS confirmation hearings are showing us exactly who Republicans are
www.readtpa.com
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Randy Southerland
Mar 24, 2022Liked by Parker Molloy

It seems like we’re constantly saying (fill in the blank) is “showing us exactly who Republicans are.” Ad if this was something new and we don’t already know who and what they are.

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insidej0b
Writes insidej0b’s Newsletter
Mar 24, 2022Liked by Parker Molloy

Jesus H Christ, you couldn't be more perfectly (and obviously) right. I have an unhealthy (can't even find a word for it) need for your posts. Then to always know the appropriate Bright Eyes (or whatever) track to sign off with is just more... "I got the blues, I got the blues....that's me!"

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