An Ode to St. Ruth

Watching the outpouring of liberal emotion over last week’s passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has caught me a little by surprise. I mean, I get it… to a point. As the second female justice, she served on the high court for 27 years, during which time she was a reliable progressive vote. So, obviously, the Democrat Party, Planned Parenthood, and the mainstream media would be expected to mourn her death. However, her sudden elevation to judicial sainthood is what has caught me a bit off-guard.

Democrats who argue that 40 days is insufficient time to confirm a new justice before the general election have been far quicker to nominate RBG for instant beatification. Bypassing the traditional five-year waiting period before the canonization process can begin, Ginsburg has been granted a Disney-style “fast pass” to sainthood. No stops along the way for the normal “Servant of God”, “Venerable Servant of God”, and “Blessed” designations. And certainly, no time for sober deliberation by a Bishop, a Postulator, or a Tribunal. No, it’s sainthood or bust for RBG.

So, what miracles did she perform or were performed in her name? Vigorously defending Roe v. Wade would be one and upholding Obamacare would be another… at least in the eyes of her liberal constituency. They would also include validating same-sex marriage among her many other qualifications. And, according to the progressives, her crowning achievement was somehow finding that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 – championed by a Baptist preacher named Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. – was meant to include gender identity as a protected class.

Forget about the inconvenient truth that abortion, homosexuality, and same-sex marriage all violate the official teachings of both Catholicism and Judaism. If anyone deserves immediate sainthood, it is RBG. Why should she have to wait nine long years, like Pope John Paul II did, before being canonized?

Truth be told, the rush to engrave Ginsburg’s face on the Mount Rushmore of Supreme Court justices has one over-riding rationale. Simply put, the liberals want to so elevate her status in the public’s mind that anything less than a six-month period of national mourning would be considered tacky, offensive, and even sacrilegious. No, the progressives argue, reverence for St. Ruth dictates that we must wait until after Inauguration Day before filling her seat.

Of course, the Democrats are counting on Joe Biden remaining lucid long enough to be elected and to recite the oath of office (from a teleprompter). Then, and only then, would it be permissible to begin the process of identifying RBG’s replacement. After all, a jurist of her caliber deserves no less – or so goes the progressive reasoning.

Not to pour cold water on the Democrats seemingly well-crafted plan, but there are several gaping holes in their devious strategy. First, several Supreme Court justices were confirmed in less than 40 days, including John Paul Stevens (19 days) in 1975 and Sandra Day O’Conner (33 days) in 1981. RBG herself was nominated by President Bill Clinton on June 22, 1993, confirmed on August 3rd, commissioned on August 5th, and installed on August 10th. Oh, and by the way, her confirmation vote was 96-3. That’s right… only three of those supposedly obstinate Republicans tried to block the nomination of a liberal jurist.

Second, Ginsburg’s own words have come back to bite her posthumously. In an address at Georgetown Law School in September 2016, RBG argued that a president – in this case, Barack Obama – had every right to nominate a potential Supreme Court justice in the final year of his term. “The President is elected for 4 years not 3 years, so the powers that he has in year 3 continue into year 4. Maybe some members of the Senate will wake up and appreciate that that’s how it should be.” OUCH!

Finally – and perhaps most problematic to Ginsburg’s chances of receiving an expedited canonization – she somehow miscalculated the timing of her own demise. Had RGB resigned for reasons of age or health anytime between January 20, 2009 and say, December 31, 2015, President Obama would have been able to nominate a leftist jurist to replace her. Instead, she rolled the dice… and lost.

Real saints should know better.