1. Most Americans have a strong belief in fairness. Republicans established a new rule in 2016: no confirmations of new Justices in election years. Now, in 2020, they plan to violate the rules *that they set*. Democrats should hammer that message home in a blitz of advertising.
2. Democrats should also try to deter such procedural abuses with credible threats of actions *if* Republicans choose to ram through a Justice in violation of their own rules. Options should include a) adding additional Justices; b) eliminating the filibuster; c) DC/PR statehood.
3. In the past, I favored Senate institutionalism (I think it's a good thing to have procedural mechanisms that encourage cross-party compromise). But those, largely due to McConnell, have been obliterated. Either both parties play by the rules, or the rules can be changed.
4. There is a risk, of course, that this will usher in a death spiral that leads to a serious erosion of US democracy, in which the party that wins always changes the rules. But Republicans *already* started that death spiral. Should Democrats just roll over and accept it? No.
5. There is a larger conversation about Supreme Court reform that should take place. Lifetime appointments are anti-democratic and create much higher stakes because court control can shift for decades with one death. Something like 10 or 12 year terms would be, in my view, wise.
6. Yes, the court opening could help Trump consolidate his base further pre-election. But it *should* also help Biden consolidate the left. If you love AOC or Bernie, you have to recognize that this Trump pick could derail most progressive goals through the 2040s.
7. If you needed any more evidence that this will be the most consequential election in modern American history, you just got it. There's a month and a half left. Do whatever you can to defeat Trumpism and punish those who don't play by their own rules by changing Senate control.
8. The bottom line is this: Republicans set precedent against Supreme Court nominations in election years in 2016. If they now violate their own rules for partisan gain, then Democrats would be justified in doing the same if they win in 2021. They should make that credible threat
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