Known as the Thurgood Marshall of women's equality, Ruth Bader Ginsberg was a pioneer who helped transform the American legal landscape even before she joined the Supreme Court. She pointed out that laws that pretended to put women on "pedestals" actually kept them in "cages" and then led the fight to strike down those discriminatory laws. On the Court, she not only participated in landmark decisions like marriage equality, but she also led stinging dissents, like the one against the reprehensible 5-4 decision in 2013 to roll back the protections of the Voting Rights Act. History has proven her right.

We must defend her legacy on the Supreme Court. We know that Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell will put their own partisan interests ahead of the good of our country, but we will pursue every angle to block them from hijacking Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat on the Court for their political purposes. We must start by building overwhelming pressure and public sentiment for at least four Republican Senators to state that they will not support any action to fill this seat until after Inauguration Day and after a new Congress is sworn in. That is the principle that Mitch McConnell established when President Barack Obama nominated Merrick Garland to fill the seat of Justice Scalia. President Obama nominated Garland in March of 2016 -- eight months before that election. It would be a gross abuse of power and a violation of the McConnell Rule to allow a vote just weeks out from our November 3rd election.

We must rally the American people. A radical, stacked, right wing Court would strike down the ACA and destroy access to affordable health care, take away women's rights, and give corporations even more power over workers.

Our country is facing a grave moment and a crisis of public confidence. The last thing we need is for Trump and McConnell to succeed in a power grab that applies one rule to Democratic presidents and another to Republican presidents. The Supreme Court's stature has already been diminished. Stacking the Court with radical right wing ideologues would lead to constitutional chaos and crisis.

This is a moment when we must stand up for our country and for the Notorious RBG. As her granddaughter stated, Ruth Bader Ginsburg's fervent deathbed wish was that the country waits until after Inauguration Day to fill her seat on the Supreme Court.

Thanks for being a partner in this fight.

ChrisPaid for by Van Hollen for Senate
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