What have we here? Well, we have two Democrat Senators, both from states Trump won in 2016, both up for re-election in 2018, both of whom have decided that Neil Gorsuch will make a fine Supreme Court Justice. Joe Manchin (W VA) and Heidi Heitkamp (SD) have announced that they'll vote to confirm Gorsuch, in defiance of Chuck Schumer's planned filibuster.
First out of the gate was Manchin, who posted the following to his Twitter feed.
I will vote to confirm Judge Neil Gorsuch to be the ninth justice on the Supreme Court. pic.twitter.com/MpVbaqf0LB
A short time later, Heitkamp posted the following video (See Below). In it, she expresses disappointment over the fate of Merrick Garland, but says "two wrongs don't make a right."
In a written facebook post, Heitkamp went a little deeper into Neil Gorsuch's qualifications:
I’ve decided to vote in favor of his confirmation. He has a record as a balanced, meticulous, and well respected jurist who understands the rule of law. He has unique and critical experience with tribal sovereignty, Indian law, and public lands issues in the west, and has received the endorsement of numerous tribes and major Native American organizations. During our meeting and at his hearing, he reinforced the importance of a judiciary that remains independent of the executive and legislative branches of government – and that acts as a proper check and balance on the other two branches of government. I expect him to follow through on that critical tenet.
So, that's two red state Dems who've caved even before the filibuster process gets started. We'd need six more to follow suit if Republicans want to confirm Gorsuch without invoking "the Harry Reid option." For reasons I explained here, that nuke should already have been detonated, but it's pretty clear that Gorsuch will be confirmed one way or another.
There are plenty more Dems operating in states handily won by Donald Trump. A quick look at the electoral tea leaves reveals that the 2018 map is shaping up to be another Democrat bloodbath, so they're bound to be nervous about lashing themselves to Schumer's obnoxious, obviously-partisan, scorched Earth policy. These people love their cushy gigs, and it's doubtful they'll want to sacrifice their careers at the filibuster altar.
Expect to see more spooked lefties follow Heitkamp and Manchin out the door.
Will there be enough? Time will tell.
