I'm impressed with the forceful arguments presented by our Democratic senators at the hearings. This vote was a defining moment for the Democrats. It was obvious early on that the only strategy to effectively defeat this nomination was to filibuster. Individual "no" votes would be meaningless. And if the filibuster would be met with the nuclear option, then so be it. It's clear that any future attempt to filibuster would be met with the same reaction, so nothing would have been lost by its use--yet there was everything to gain as a Party.
I will not go over the points as to why this nomination had to be met with all the force we could gather. (It was like a smorgasbord of critical issues were there to choose from.) And how did our Party confront this challenge? They approached it as individuals. Each had the spotlight, and solid arguments were made as to the ominous consequences of placing this particular nominee on the Bench. But was there any stand taken as a Party? It all became just a show. The Democrats were DYSFUNCTIONAL as a Party. We were not worth it.
I understand Harry Reid said "almost all the senators," "about 44" were going to vote "no," but about 8 were not willing to filibuster.
I sent an email to each of my senators advising that as an informed voter, I want to know if she voted to support a filibuster. Explained the record would show the "yes" and "no" votes, but I want to know if she voted to filibuster, as that is what I would base my vote on in the next election. Advised that if, on this critical nominee, my Party chose to act as individuals rather than as a Party--as it was ONLY as a Party that they could have made a difference on this one--then I would only support them as individuals and not as a Party. If as a Party they are dysfunctional, then my money, voluntary support efforts, etc., would be directed only to individuals who I know were willing to stand up for us. We're going to need elected representative up to the challenges that are going to face us in the future if we really are sincere about changing things.
I ended by again asking each if she supported a filibuster or opposed it.
This may not serve to change a position on filibuster (it's not over till it's over), but it will make them know we hold them accountable. An individual "no" vote is not enough if it wasn't backed by enough conviction to filibuster.
I suggest we ask each of our Democratic senators to be accountable. If a response is no forthcoming, keep asking. Let them know it matters.