Even Red State Oklahoma Has Turned Against Mitch McConnell’s Obama SCOTUS Obstruction

Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 08:44 pm

In deep red Oklahoma, Republicans didn’t fare well in an online poll about their Senate tactics of delaying President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee hearings and confirmation. In fact, they were roughly 2-1 against it.

To be precise, they were 62-31 against the Republican Senate strategy in the Tahlequah Daily Press online poll and they listed some pretty good reasons for this, too.

Reasons that do not bode well for Republicans.

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Buried in an article titled, “Locals differ on GOP’s delay strategy with Garland” was this:

Whatever the Constitution implies, respondents to a Tahlequah Daily Press online poll were roughly 2-1 against the Senate’s tactic of delay. The poll asked: “President Obama last week nominated Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court, which is his constitutional duty. The Senate has said Garland won’t get a hearing because they want to wait until after the election. Do you agree with the Senate’s decision?”
Among responses, 31 percent strongly agreed and four percent somewhat agreed, but 62 percent strongly disagreed and four percent somewhat disagreed. None were undecided.

Sixty-two percent in red, red Oklahoma strongly disagreed with the Republican Senate. Oh, boy.

Things got worse in a forum on their Facebook Page, where readers wrote their opinions on the matter. Readers wrote that this showed Obama to be a strong President and that his nominee Judge Merrick Garland is “the best the conservatives can hope for”:

“Big gamble on the Republican’s part,” wrote Jacqueline Cook Tyler. “I think Obama is showing what a strong president he is by allowing the Senate to make a choice on behalf of the country. Garland is the best the conservatives can hope for when the Democrats retain the White House.”

Another reader seemed disgusted with the Senate for not doing their job especially when Garland is a “almost a gift to the Republican party”. She also condemned Republicans for acting like toddlers:

Stephanie Kaufman Bayhylle wrote: “The Senate needs to do their job. In my opinion he’s a good choice, almost a gift to the Republican Party. Not confirming after the hearing is one thing, but not even granting a hearing is something else. They’re acting like toddlers when what they need to do is get busy doing the job for which we elected them to do.”

News on the street is Republicans are secretly hoping Democrats will force them to vote on SCOTUS with a procedural move, so they won’t have to be seen backing down from their appease the base wild obstruction and delegitimization of President Obama, while at the same time can claim to have actually done their jobs.

To be clear, Republicans aren’t admitting that they are begging Democrats to do this to them, but only Republicans are discussing the procedural move as something they think likely to happen. This translates to the way Republicans have been operating in the House, appeasing the crazies with unfunding the government (etc) and then flailing impotently until Leader Nancy Pelosi rescues them from their own party with Democratic votes.

When you’ve lost red, red Oklahoma, your strategy is probably not a great one for a conservative party.

Sarah Jones

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