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Starting today, the Republican will lead Federal Judge Designate Amy Coney Barrett’s hearing, and you can be sure of the Democrats’ anger. In the past, I used to work with them.
Opportunist and astute politician: Lindsey Graham
Keystone
When Lindsey Graham speaks at campaign events, she likes to start her speech with the words: “I come from the federal government. I’m here to help. “He borrowed this little joke from former President Ronald Reagan, and he’s been doing it for a while: Graham, 65, has served in the United States Senate for South Carolina since 2003. He was long considered a politician. moderate who worked with the Democrats. He was respected on both sides of the political spectrum. However, since Donald Trump was elected president, he has undergone an astonishing change. Graham is Trump’s most ardent and urgent supporter, leading to the Democrats to despise him almost as much as they despise the president himself.
As of this Monday, Graham will be at the center of the Democratic furor, since as president of the Senate Judicial Committee he presides over the hearing of Amy Coney Barrett, who, according to the will of the Republicans, occupies the place in the Supreme Court that has remained vacant by the death of liberal Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Cut must take. Graham wants to pass the case before the November 3 election. If all goes according to plan, Republicans will confirm Barrett as the new Supreme Court Justice for life in the last week of October.
Federal Judge Designated Amy Coney Barrett and Lindsey Graham at a meeting
Keystone
The whole process infuriates Democrats, but they are particularly angry at Graham. This is because he said in October 2018 that if there was a vacancy on the Supreme Court last year of Trump’s first term in office, it would wait until after the election with the occupation. You could take his word for it. This statement no longer interests him in the least.
That he broke his word so blatantly shouldn’t have come as a surprise to Democrats. Before the 2016 election, Graham made several statements about what he thought of Donald Trump. He called him a racist, described him as “xenophobic” and “intolerant.” He called him a “freak”, said Trump was “unfit for the job.” That didn’t stop him from praising Trump after the election. Democrats are especially nervous because he likes to praise Trump’s golf game so much.
“Most despicable process”
However, Graham is not only a brazen opportunist, he is also a canny politician. He proved it, among other things, when Republicans last held a seat on the Supreme Court. Her candidate, Brett Kavanaugh, was accused by Christine Blasey Ford of sexually abusing her as a teenager. Ford testified in the Senate that he looked credible, while Kavanaugh didn’t look good. Graham saw that the Republicans were about to drop the matter. He gave a five-minute speech accusing Democrats of wanting to destroy Kavanaugh’s life to score political points. He called on his Republican colleagues that if they didn’t vote for Kavanaugh, they were legitimizing the “most despicable process” he had seen in his political life. It was like a wake-up call for Republicans. They elected Kavanaugh, who without Graham’s angry speech probably wouldn’t be on the Supreme Court today.
At the time, Graham’s poll numbers soared after falling earlier, possibly because the grassroots didn’t want to forget what he once said about Trump. Graham now expects a similar effect again: that the Republican base will give him high credit if he, as head of the judicial committee, ensures that the judge position is filled quickly. He needs all the support: Graham is running for reelection as senator in November, and his Democratic rival Jaime Harrison has caught up in spectacular fashion.
