Ronny Jackson, kind of a dick at work and maybe an alcoholic: beyond the pale.
Gina Haspel, torturer: meh, fine.
Never change, Democrats.
I mean, I get that you're upset (as you should be), but this is an extremely hot take because 1) Jackson was someone who was grossly unfit in general to run a Federal Agency, much like Ben Carson, and 2) one Democratic Senator approving of Haspel's nomination has no real bearing on the opinions of the rest of the party.
I'm super disappointed in this and am wondering what Donnelly is seeing that's making him buckle here in a way that other vulnerable Senators are not. I think that's just as scary as the prospect of Haspel being approved.
Right. The way I see it is that Schumer and Durbin are able to whip when desired and selectively allows for defections at certain times. In Haspel's particular case, effective whipping would have meant the difference between success and failure, with McCain unavailable and Paul against.
Contrast this situation with the tax bill, when Republicans had the votes regardless and Schumer and Durbin whipped opposition so that the vote is completely partisan. The ability to whip is there, but it's selectively deployed. Democrats knew that the tax bill would be a contentious issue in the midterms and politics took over; they whipped the votes to create a clear contrast. Which is good politics, of course!
I'm disgusted with Democrats because foreign policy, foreign affairs and civil liberties are my prime motivation for generally voting for Democrats. Democrats, in turn, do not share those priorities (views generally align, but it's rarely a driving force or top priority) and it's a frustrating experience. They never particularly have, outside of a handful of libertarian minded Democrats.
They pay lip service to it when it's convenient (like in 06 and 08) but it isn't a core part of the party. The party does not enforce ideological discipline on this issue the way it does more prominently with e.g., abortion. There's zero chance any group affiliated with the party will go after Donnelly or Manchin for this issue the same way EMILY'S list went after Heath Mello. Why continue to support a party if it doesn't advocate for one's issues?
Obligatory apology for hot take too. Ronny Jackson is in no way qualified and Haspel, in terms of experience and not morals technically is.
