GAMECHANGER

Thank you Justice Breyer! Since the day that President Biden was inaugurated with a razor thin majority, Democrats have been screaming bloody murder for Breyer to take a hike, yours truly included. Breyer responded to the pressure by saying that A justice swears an oath to the law, and not to say one party that may have helped to put him there. And it turns out that Breyer, for a guy with no sense of political timing, was smarter than all of the rest of us combined.

Here’s why. Remember the first 6-8 months of the Biden presidency? He was on a sugar high, his poll numbers were through the roof. If Breyer had stepped down early, his replacement, and the process would have gotten lost in the rest of the news, robbing it of it’s true import.

But where are the Democrats right now? Right now they’re riding a news cycle so negative that it makes you want to sit down and cry, and beg for mama. Some of it, like inflation and Omicon are things largely beyond the control of Biden and the Democrats. But others, like the implosion of voting rights, and the stalling of the BBB Bill, are self inflicted gunshot wounds. But Justice Breyer is about to do something that the Democrats could never dream of doing on their own. He is about to reshape the media narrative.

Most likely either tomorrow or Friday, the White House will receive Breyer’s official letter of resignation. Out of simple courtesy they will give him the time to make a personal announcement in the media, and then the White House will hold an official announcement ceremony. And after that? Let the games begin!

Justice Watch! will become the new national drinking game. Pundits and analysts will drag out unofficial short lists of possible candidates, and tout their impeccable skills and experience. Reporters will begin tapping their most precious sources for any golden nuggets as to who may be the front runner, and then report it. People will sit around bars and living rooms, engaged in good natured debate about their own person choices.

And all of this is good news that the Democrats can shape and control! The White House can control the timing and release of information to keep public interest high, highlighting the positives of Biden, the party, and the nominees. And if things turn out right, this Breyer announcement could turn into a near tidal wave of positive news for the Democrats to ride.

Reporting is continuing to show that the Omicon variant seems to have peaked, and is actually on a steep downward trend. If this continues, it’s good news for Democrats, and they can tout it. Increased normalcy plays well, and will help to mitigate the supply chain damage. Jerome Powell announced today that the Federal Reserve plans an incremental increase to the lending rate in March. Wall Street may hate it, but tightening the flow of cheap money should help to rein in inflation a bit, so fuck ’em.

According to Democratic congressman Adam Schiff, the J6 public hearings are unlikely to start until either late February or early March. What better way to fill that empty time than a well coordinated, positive news cycle about filling a SCOTUS seat with a progressive, Justice who just happens to be the first African American Woman elevated to the court? And then segue cleanly into the J6 televised hearings hammering the GOP with irrefutable documentary evidence of their Inspector Clouseau attempt at a coup d’etat? 

One more thing. With the implosion of the voting rights acts, thanks to Judas Joe and Grand Canyon Barbie, the word is out on the street. The African American community is bummed. Once again they’ve been led down the primrose path by the Democrats. Two words. Promises. Kept. People sometimes tend to simplify things. They like to refer to the African American community as the bedrock of the Democratic coalition. But it’s a bit more than that. The true bedrock of the Democratic party is African American women. They are the organizers and motivators, they drag their men out to the polls. And they are tired.

Promises. Kept. Reporting I’ve seen shows that African American women are discouraged. They’re still going out to organize and register and educate voters, but it’s a tough slog. But what happens if Biden actually puts an African American woman on the Supreme Court? Think they just might start to get some of their mojo back?

As I said, I was right out there with you on the ramparts for Breyer to take a hike ASAP once Biden was inaugurated, simply to avoid a repeat performance of the RBG debacle. But the way the first year has turned out, the Breyer retirement at this particular moment gives the Democrats the incredible opportunity to shape and control the narrative all the way into the general election campaign. You can’t ask for more than that when the odds are stacked against you.