The passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been a gut punch for all of us. For some of us like Washtenaw County Democratic Party (WCDP) Executive Board member Eli Savit, there was a personal connection. For others, she served as a role model as a powerful woman who changed the world for the better. For all of us, she was someone who represented the best combination of incredible intelligence, deep passion and commitment, and a never ending desire to elevate the position of women and other marginalized groups in all ways.
Justice Ginsberg’s death will now thrust our country into a political cataclysm. Republicans who refused to let President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland to be voted on in the U.S. Senate for 293 days are now pushing to select Justice Ginsburg’s replacement in just a month and a half. Democrats are highlighting this rank hypocrisy but have little power to do anything about it.
Our course forward is clear: If President Trump and his GOP accomplices in the U.S. Senate fill this vacancy before the end of the year, Democrats must add at least two seats to the Supreme Court and fill them with people nominated by President Joe Biden. However, for this to happen, we must win the presidency AND take back the majority in the Senate.
As we work through our grief, we must then pivot to doing everything we can to ensure these victories for Democrats so we can turn the tide in America and restore integrity at all levels of government. That means each day, each one of us must wake up and ask ourselves what we are doing to make that happen. Voting starts in Michigan in just a matter of days so there is no time to lose.
- Make a donation to Gary Peters re-election campaign
- Volunteer with the WCDP and the Western Washtenaw Democrats to distribute Voter Guides or to help in some other way
- Talk to your family, friends, and acquaintances to make sure they’re doing all they can
Do all of these things and more and do it in the memory of Ruth Bader Ginsburg who famously said, “Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”
On behalf of the entire WCDP Executive Board and in solidarity,
Chris Savage
WCDP Chair
