In Support of Beto's Everywhere

by Pa Rock
Citizen Journalist

America's latest political crisis came to a head yesterday morning when the United States Senate, a body known for rarely "working" more than four days a week - and between vacations that sometimes last for months, met in an unusual Saturday session and narrowly approved Trump's nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to serve as the 114th Justice on the Supreme Court.  The vote was 50 to 48, with Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voting "present" and Republican Steve Daines of Montana missing the vote due to his daughter's wedding.  One Democrat, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, voted with the Republicans in what was otherwise a party line vote.

I suspect that overall people of my generation were not surprised by the vote, whether they were for Kavanaugh or not.  The United States Senate is a relatively conservative body of older white gentlemen who dislike the noise and notion of change.  It was almost inevitable that if Trump or McConnell did not pull the plug on Kavanaugh, his nomination would eventually prevail - regardless of the damage that the process of confirming a deeply flawed candidate would ultimately do to the nation.

Kavanaugh was confirmed, the Senate was battered but not broken, and the Supreme Court has been tilted to the right in a manner that is likely to be reflected in a curbing of civil rights for a generation or more.  The Supreme Court has also been irrevocably stained by the addition of yet another Justice who is carrying the baggage of sexual abuse allegations.

Stuff happens - and it happened yesterday - and both sides must now struggle to contain their bitterness and governing must resume.

Beto O'Rourke, the only native-born Texan running for the Senate in Texas this year, came out with a compassionate and moving letter yesterday after Kavanaugh was confirmed, a letter that I felt went a long way toward calming the animosity that has raged across the land in the wake of this nomination. O'Rourke, who is running to unseat incumbent Senator Ted Cruz, stated his position on the matter of the Senate's confirmation of the jurist, and then went on to calmly chart a path forward from the chaos of the moment.

And, remarkably, he did not use the communication as a vehicle for begging for campaign donations.

Here is Beto O'Rourke's letter of encouragement to Texas and America in its full text:

"Today, the Senate voted on the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court.  If I were in the Senate, I would have voted no. 

"The events of the past two weeks - including Dr. Ford's courageous, powerful, and credible testimony and Judge Kavanaugh's temperament in his response - have only added to my concern that he does not meet the bar to serve on the Supreme Court. 

"I am disappointed that he was confirmed.  I know that today's news and the headlines we've seen over the last few weeks have been extremely difficult for many Texans and especially painful for survivors of sexual assault and sexual harassment - so many of whom bravely spoke out, shared their stories, and continue to lead the way.  The news has also been hard on those who might feel let down after making their voices heard by calling their senators, organizing with one another, uniting for what we believe in.  Today, we are going to come together for one another. 

"But tonight and tomorrow and in the days that follow, I want you to know that we are going to meet this disappointment weighing on many of us with the power of people who want to make sure that our government represents all of us.  In a democracy, the government is the people and the people are the government.  If the government does not represent the will of the people, we will change the makeup of the government. 

"We will ensure that the senators voting on lifetime appointments to the Supreme Court fight for people, for our rights, and our future.  That they they put country over party.  That they bring a sense of civility and decency to what is supposed to be the greatest deliberative body in the world. 

"Together - not as Democrats or Republicans but as Texans and Americans - we will ensure that the next nominee to be confirmed to the Supreme Court represents all of our interests 

"We will do it because in a state that is last in voter turnout - not by accident by by design - we understand the importance of voting rights. 

"We will do it because in a state that is the epicenter of the maternal mortality crisis - three times as deadly for African American women - we understand that Roe vs Wade is the decided law of the land and that women should be able to make their own decisions about their own bodies, and have access to the healthcare that will save their lives. 

"We will do it because in a state where you can be fired for being gay and where the justice system does not serve everyone, we understand the importance of civil rights and equal justice under law. 

"And we will do it because we understand the need to put people over PACs, people over corporations, and people over special interests. 

"Thank you for staying strong for one another, for Texas, and for this country.  We will not let one another down."

Beto

Hang in there, it's going to be alright.  If a credible candidate for statewide office in Texas (of all places!) can feel emboldened enough to speak so forcefully in favor of fairness and human decency and dignity, then better days are on the horizon for all of us.  The Trump administration is a aberration and a setback, but it will be overcome by a resurgence in the forces of compassion and goodness that made America a beacon of hope to the world.

Find, support, and elect the Beto's of the world!