Democrats vowed not to go gentle into that good night. They pledged to fight, fight President Trump and Judge Gorsuch with every fiber of their being. They promised to, you know, #persist. In the end though, Chuck Schumer and company just couldn’t #resist the weekend.
After a historically bitter confirmation fight, everyone was watching to see what Democrats would do. If they really wanted to protest Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme Court, the minority party could’ve forced debate late into the evening Friday. Senate procedure actually sanctions this sort of buzz kill.
Democrats could’ve utilized Rule 22 and demanded up to 30 additional hours of debate, meaning they could have slammed the White House and decried the nominee until the Senate clock struck 7:00. Afraid of this exact possibility, Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., proposed going nuclear a second time, limiting debate to just eight hours.
But there was no need. Apparently Democrats are only woke on weekdays. Rather than fighting the good fight over a supposedly stolen Supreme Court seat, they clocked out early. Everyone got their flights out of Reagan on time.
The party of chill, Democrats don’t want to harsh anyone’s mellow. Historic filibusters of a Supreme Court nominee are cool during regular work hours. But they’re only working for the weekend.
Philip Wegmann is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
