Good point, well made.

The problem: Conservatives were told that nominating guys like Roberts would mean that there wouldn't be any 'traded decisions'.

Instead, righties have to console themselves that their SCOTUS judges are political horse traders. https://twitter.com/Neoavatara/status/1277985570472579074

I keep saying this: Liberals rest easy knowing almost exactly how their justices will rule on a case.

An abortion case? The liberal will rule to expand abortion rights. A gun case? The liberal will rule to curtail #2A protections.

It's the surest bet in American public life.

When a conservative president nominates a judge to the SCOTUS bench, the conservative has almost no assurances of how the justice will decide.

Ace of Spades talks about the defeat mechanism in the GOP, referring to the tactics elected GOPers engage in to thwart conservative policy goals.

Another massive part of the defeat mechanism? Judges-nominated by GOP presidents-who go against righty legal thinking/policy ideas.

This is why you can have a GOP president, a GOP Senate, and a SCOTUS with 5 judges nominated by GOP presidents...and GOPers/conservatives see almost no gains.

It's a cool game, when you think about it.

In case the GOP president and/or a GOP state/federal legislature fucks up and gets a conservative policy goal passed into law, the GOP-nominated SCOTUS judges are there to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

Here's a radical remedy: The President should just say fuck it and nominate conservative activists to the Supreme Court. Don't even bother picking lawyers or judges. Just put hard-right hammer heads who don't give a shit about stare decisis or precedent or any of that nonsense.

"Oh no", you say, "that'll delegitimize the highest court in the land."

I'm counting on it. These nine unelected people have far too much power in the nation's political life. Taking them down a peg wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

Besides, we've had 90+ years of liberals pulling decisions out of their socialist-sympathizing assholes. Democrats don't worry about the sanctity of the court. They use the SCOTUS to advance their agenda. Why shouldn't conservatives?

Hey, I wish it wasn't like this. It would be better for everyone if a judge with the Federalist Society's seal of approval didn't turn into a left-wing flake when he gets on the SCOTUS.

Since all vetting/pedigree stuff doesn't work, it's time to go a different way.

Here's one consolation: If you just nominate right-wing activists to the SCOTUS, you have some idea of how they will rule.

Nowadays, you have no clue how a GOP-nominated SCOTUS judge will decide a case now.

None.

It's time to stop taking stupid blind-luck chances.