Yes, the Republican US Senate majority just confirmed the racist, gun-grabbing Loretta Lynch.
Yes, Ted Cruz voted against cloture, then departed from the US Senate to attend another fundraiser.
Once again, a little perspective in the face of this setback.
More Republicans are voting against the leadership and paying attention to the will of the voters.
Forty-three senators voted against Lynch. Half that number had rejected Holder six years ago.
The Constitution addresses "We the People" not "We the Republicans" or "We the Elected Officials". No matter what losses or discouragement conservatives endure from the current Congress, it is ultimately their job, and their glory, to demand limited, responsible government. No longer giving up or running away, now more than ever constitutional conservatives must fight on, fight back, demand leadership and remonstrance for presidential overreach, for executive abuses and criminal waste, fraud, and spendthrift agendas.
The bigger question arises: how do voters keep US Senators accountable? They run for reelection every six years, removed from the immediate awareness and outrage of the voter electorate.
Arizona's John McCain promised "Build the dang fence!" in 2010, yet the US Senate did not build the fence, and he signed onto the 2013 Obamacare of Immigration Bills. Fellow Arizona lawmaker Jeff Flake has sided with the Democrats and the Big Government agenda on a number of occasions, along with South Carolina's Lindsey Graham. It cannot be the status of the Senate alone, since Graham's fellow legislator Tim Scott has been more conservative, and has voted in line with the constitution and the concerns of his constituents. One thing is certain: Scott is less of a Washington creature than Graham. Same with McCain, who has operated in Washington since the early 1980s.
What is the solution, where is the consolation?
The younger Republican US Senators, like Tom Cotton, Benjamin Saase, and the recently primary-challenged re-elected Pat Roberts, all voted "No!" to cloture, and "No!" to confirmation. Joni Ernst is making the Establishment squeal. The key difference this year?
The New Media, relentlessly holding the feet of Washington DC to the fire.
Let us consider the two key votes in connection with the Lynch confirmation:
First, the cloture vote, which would prevent further delays on the vote:
Grouped By Vote Position
| YEAs ---66 | ||
| Alexander (R-TN) Ayotte (R-NH) Baldwin (D-WI) Bennet (D-CO) Blumenthal (D-CT) Booker (D-NJ) Boxer (D-CA) Brown (D-OH) Burr (R-NC) Cantwell (D-WA) Capito (R-WV) Cardin (D-MD) Carper (D-DE) Casey (D-PA) Cochran (R-MS) Collins (R-ME) Coons (D-DE) Corker (R-TN) Cornyn (R-TX) Donnelly (D-IN) Durbin (D-IL) Feinstein (D-CA) | Flake (R-AZ) Franken (D-MN) Gardner (R-CO) Gillibrand (D-NY) Graham (R-SC) Hatch (R-UT) Heinrich (D-NM) Heitkamp (D-ND) Hirono (D-HI) Johnson (R-WI) Kaine (D-VA) King (I-ME) Kirk (R-IL) Klobuchar (D-MN) Leahy (D-VT) Manchin (D-WV) Markey (D-MA) McCaskill (D-MO) McConnell (R-KY) Menendez (D-NJ) Merkley (D-OR) Mikulski (D-MD) | Murphy (D-CT) Murray (D-WA) Nelson (D-FL) Peters (D-MI) Portman (R-OH) Reed (D-RI) Reid (D-NV) Roberts (R-KS) Rounds (R-SD) Sanders (I-VT) Schatz (D-HI) Schumer (D-NY) Shaheen (D-NH) Stabenow (D-MI) Tester (D-MT) Thune (R-SD) Tillis (R-NC) Udall (D-NM) Warner (D-VA) Warren (D-MA) Whitehouse (D-RI) Wyden (D-OR) |
| NAYs ---34 | ||
| Barrasso (R-WY) Blunt (R-MO) Boozman (R-AR) Cassidy (R-LA) Coats (R-IN) Cotton (R-AR) Crapo (R-ID) Cruz (R-TX) Daines (R-MT) Enzi (R-WY) Ernst (R-IA) Fischer (R-NE) | Grassley (R-IA) Heller (R-NV) Hoeven (R-ND) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Lankford (R-OK) Lee (R-UT) McCain (R-AZ) Moran (R-KS) Murkowski (R-AK) Paul (R-KY) Perdue (R-GA) | Risch (R-ID) Rubio (R-FL) Sasse (R-NE) Scott (R-SC) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Sullivan (R-AK) Toomey (R-PA) Vitter (R-LA) Wicker (R-MS) |
Why end debate? Why allow another illiberal attorney general who gave no answers? It is not enough to move a procedure along. Too many US Senators are hiding behind the second "No" in a vote, but the cloture vote is a telling outcome.
Still, consider the final tally to confirm Lynch:
| Ayotte (R-NH) Baldwin (D-WI) Bennet (D-CO) Blumenthal (D-CT) Booker (D-NJ) Boxer (D-CA) Brown (D-OH) Cantwell (D-WA) Cardin (D-MD) Carper (D-DE) Casey (D-PA) Cochran (R-MS) Collins (R-ME) Coons (D-DE) Donnelly (D-IN) Durbin (D-IL) Feinstein (D-CA) Flake (R-AZ) Franken (D-MN) | Gillibrand (D-NY) Graham (R-SC) Hatch (R-UT) Heinrich (D-NM) Heitkamp (D-ND) Hirono (D-HI) Johnson (R-WI) Kaine (D-VA) King (I-ME) Kirk (R-IL) Klobuchar (D-MN) Leahy (D-VT) Manchin (D-WV) Markey (D-MA) McCaskill (D-MO) McConnell (R-KY) Menendez (D-NJ) Merkley (D-OR) Mikulski (D-MD) | Murphy (D-CT) Murray (D-WA) Nelson (D-FL) Peters (D-MI) Portman (R-OH) Reed (D-RI) Reid (D-NV) Sanders (I-VT) Schatz (D-HI) Schumer (D-NY) Shaheen (D-NH) Stabenow (D-MI) Tester (D-MT) Udall (D-NM) Warner (D-VA) Warren (D-MA) Whitehouse (D-RI) Wyden (D-OR) |
| NAYs ---43 | ||
| Alexander (R-TN) Barrasso (R-WY) Blunt (R-MO) Boozman (R-AR) Burr (R-NC) Capito (R-WV) Cassidy (R-LA) Coats (R-IN) Corker (R-TN) Cornyn (R-TX) Cotton (R-AR) Crapo (R-ID) Daines (R-MT) Enzi (R-WY) Ernst (R-IA) | Fischer (R-NE) Gardner (R-CO) Grassley (R-IA) Heller (R-NV) Hoeven (R-ND) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Lankford (R-OK) Lee (R-UT) McCain (R-AZ) Moran (R-KS) Murkowski (R-AK) Paul (R-KY) Perdue (R-GA) Risch (R-ID) | Roberts (R-KS) Rounds (R-SD) Rubio (R-FL) Sasse (R-NE) Scott (R-SC) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Sullivan (R-AK) Thune (R-SD) Tillis (R-NC) Toomey (R-PA) Vitter (R-LA) Wicker (R-MS) |
| Not Voting - 1 | ||
| Cruz (R-TX) | ||
Who were the Republicans who voted against cloture and confirmation?
| Barrasso (R-WY) Blunt (R-MO) Boozman (R-AR) Cassidy (R-LA) Coats (R-IN) Cotton (R-AR) Crapo (R-ID) Cruz (R-TX) Daines (R-MT) Enzi (R-WY) Ernst (R-IA) Fischer (R-NE) | Grassley (R-IA) Heller (R-NV) Hoeven (R-ND) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Lankford (R-OK) Lee (R-UT) McCain (R-AZ) Moran (R-KS) Murkowski (R-AK) Paul (R-KY) Perdue (R-GA) | Risch (R-ID) Rubio (R-FL) Sasse (R-NE) Scott (R-SC) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Sullivan (R-AK) Toomey (R-PA) Vitter (R-LA) Wicker (R-MS) |
Eight. As the Republican Party takes on a more conservative core as well as hue, the growing class of elected officials are reflecting that character, no longer going along with the tradition and precedent of staid comity
How many are up for reelection in 2016?
One stands out -- Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania. His odds of winning in Pennsylvania have improved and he is voting in line with this stronger upper hand. Chuck Grassley of Iowa commands more respect than ever, despite his lengthy tenure in the US Senate. Character counts a great deal in representatives. Do they stand their ground in the face of extensive attacks? What drives them into office determines what will drive their values and votes. Grassley has not wavered from GOP views, and should be commended for his stance. Isakson replaced a Democrat in 2004, and has stayed true to his conservative roots.
Then there's John McCain. He is resisting Lynch because he has a tough reelection on his hands, just as he faced a primary challenge in 2016. If only these US Senators were prompted by principle rather than the threat of an election loss. This very cynical motive frustrates popular opinion and populist influence, granted, but also hinders accountability and transparency for the voting public in relation to their US Senators.
Matthew Boyle's latest column on Breitbart exposes the undue influence of Minority Leader Harry Reid, and the untenable lack of leadership from Majority Leader Mitch McConnell:
What’s perhaps most interesting about all this data is that there are 54—a majority—Republicans in the U.S. Senate and just 46 Democrats. The GOP majority is because of the midterm elections last November, which saw a nine-seat swing in favor of Republicans—one of the biggest in history. But it’s quite clear from the empirical data that nothing has changed, and Reid’s office is clearly quite happy about it. It’s as if he’s still the Senate Majority Leader.
McConnell on the other hand is getting beat all over the place. Whether it’s by choice or by accident, either way he currently has no defense for his failures as a leader. Offered the opportunity to comment on this story before publication, McConnell’s office did not respond by press time.
What can one conclude, and what consolations can one find from this observation?
Washington creatures like McConnell, and moderates like Kirk and Collins, are still interested in following perception rather than shaping it. Media assaults and influence still alter their motivations, even those US Senators with otherwise conservative mandates from their respective states.
The answer to this disappointing outcome? Keep fighting, keep demanding the right votes, the proper vision, the full respect for the Constitution. A New Media has arisen to ensure just that.
Benjamin Franklin did not sum up the results of the Constitutional Convention with: "A Republic, if the government agrees to it." He told his supporters and all American posterity:
"A republic, if you can keep it."
Not the US Senators, but you and I. Therefore, let us not stop #MakingDCListen
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