Prologue: When I began to teach at Atlantic Community College, the country had witnessed the Watts riots in Los Angeles in l965, inner city riots in Detroit and Newark in l967, and prolonged riots in cities nationwide after the assassination of Martin Luther King in l968.  The pattern was the same; burning buildings and looted stores while most of the victims were the black residents of the neighborhoods that were destroyed. Police strategy was to contain the violence and destruction to the inner city area. The Kerner Commission that investigated the riots gave a comprehensive analysis of the underlying causes of the riots as well as the precipitating incidents. At the heart of their report was the deep anger and frustration of the black population within the inner cities who faced discrimination and prejudice in all areas of their daily lives — work, education, housing and police intimidation.

It is now 2017 and the issue of race and racism is emblazoned in the headlines once more. When thousands of white supremacists invaded Charlottesville, Virginia on Friday night, August 11, they brought racist bigotry and deadly violence with them. Ku Klux Klan, Neo Nazis and Skinheads were met by counter-protestors the following day. President Trump at a press conference the following Tuesday blamed “both sides” for the mob violence that ensued.

Today’s events brought back what happened in l968 when race exploded across the country. I approached the Dean at Atlantic Community College to see if I could prepare a course syllabus on Race, Ethnicity, Prejudice and Discrimination.  The country was exploding and I wanted to do something constructive in my new position.  He asked me to give him a book to read before he made his decision. I gave him “Race: Man’s Most Dangerous Myth” by the anthropologist Ashley Montague. After he read the book, Dean Young gave me the go-ahead and I began teaching “The Individual and The Group” in the Spring semester of l969. It was offered until 1983 when I took a leave of absence.

          Twenty seven students signed up for the course offering, a night class once a week. I will never forget that first class. The average age of community college students was 28 and most of the class members were mature working people. There were also two Atlantic City High School seniors who were taking part in Project WILL, inter-racial learning and living.  She was black and he was white. The future black mayor of Pleasantville and his wife were in the class.  There were Vietnam veterans as well as a fire fighter and a couple who were attendants at the state hospital, Ancora.  There was almost an even number of black and white students. I learned as much that semester as the students.

History: The heart of the course, presented in both lecture and discussion was the night for “Race: Man’s Most Dangerous Myth”. I began by asking the class , “ Please jot down in a phrase or sentence what the word ‘race’ means to you.” Their answers included: “ Different groups of people.”  “Skin color.” “Different religions.” “Different backgrounds.”  “Black, white, red, yellow.” and “Different nationalities”.  Two people wrote There’s no such thing as race.”

          The lecture that evening took the students back to the l8^th century when the concept of race as we know it began. Before that time — for thousands of years —  discrimination and group hostilities grew from religion, class, caste, political and cultural differences. The man who inadvertently created the modern concept of race was a Swedish research botanist, Carl Linnaeus. In his passionate study of plant life, he developed a system of order — a way to classify according to kind and type — genus and specie.  After he classified all plant life in The System of Nature (l735), he went on to classify every known animal as well. Finally, he came to humans whom he named in Latin: Homo sapiens – man the wise.

           Linnaeus then took the next step and divided Homo sapiens into four sub groups.  Europaeus albus, Asiaticus luridus, Afer niger, and Americanus rufus.  He linked geographical location with skin color: white, yellow, black and red. (The latter described only native Americans.)  He then added, from his ethnocentric point of view what he thought were characteristics of each group.  Europaeus albus — superior, creative and lively. Asiaticus —haughty, stern and opinionated.  Afer niger – slow, negligent and cunning. Americanus rufus – easily contented, free and tenacious.  

          Linnaeus had used objective evidence when he classified plant and animal life. However, when he reached Homo sapiens, he became completely subjective and drew upon hearsay, random anecdotes and his imagination. He had never traveled to Asia, Africa or America.  Nevertheless, the stereotypes were formed and the classification was picked up by other scientists who were intrigued with measuring physical differences among human beings.  A veritable frenzy ensued, measuring cranial indices, ears, noses, hair texture and other permanent features of adult humans.

          Linnaeus did state that his categories were arbitrary groupings and he never used the word race. The term was coined by George Buffon, a French naturalist, for the first time in l749 when he decided there were six groups of human beings.   It is supremely ironic that skin color was chosen as the prime measure of difference …since skin color is NOT a permanent trait. It is an adaptable trait, affected by such factors as sun, disease, emotion and pregnancy. It is also clear that true colors — white, black, yellow and red of a painter’s palette never appear in actual skin pigmentation, Complete lack of color in an albino is the closest to white. The genes that transmit skin color are very complex in contrast to the genes for eye color. And most significant, there is a range of skin color within every human group that is far greater than the differences between the groups. These are scientific facts based on deep research studies.  

          Ashley Montague called race the “witchcraft of our times.”  He knew that people believe in myths.  And if something is defined as real, it is real in its consequences.  The two skeptical students in my class who wrote, “There is no such thing as race.” sensed what was correct.

Now, in 2017, we need to separate reality from the myth of race. Human qualities are the result of genetic endowment and nurturing as we grow from infants to maturity, often called “Nature and Nurture”. Racism — the result of centuries of defining people by their skin color — permeates our society and our lives. It is linked inextricably to our country’s history with slavery, the Civil War and Reconstruction as an aftermath. We need to separate reality from the myth of race. . Our democratic society has many levels of class and economic conditions. Where one is born and to whom, has an enormous effect upon the level of education, opportunity and success one will achieve in one’s lifetime.

…………………………………………………………………..Joyce S. Anderson 

Two Mass shootings in two days in The United States have riveted the attention of the American people.  President Joe Biden, who has a history of  strongly  supporting the 1994 Ban on Assault Weapons, is planning to act.  He is considering executive actions as well as new laws. 

Guns kill 4 0,000 Americans a year in homicides, suicides and vehicle accidents.  Mass shootings get the headlines , but are not the  major cause.  Our basic problem is  the availability of guns throughout our country in contrast to other countries.  One gun authority described The United States as having “Unique Gun Availability”  Ergo:  More guns, more deaths”  Certain states have fewer gun deaths, including California,  Illinois and much of the North East.  

Background Checks have been proven popular with surveys of the American people as a proposed law in the past, polling in the high eighty percents with gun owners as well as control advocates.   Law proposals must pass the House as well as the Senate where a filibuster becomes a deliberate way to defeat the proposal.  Sixty senators must vote Aye for it to pass. 

There are also proposals to prohibit on line sale of fire arms and to ban the manufacture and sale of assault weapons and high capacity magazines.  Another proposal is to require a license to own a gun. 

The National Rifle Association,  NRA,  has been the chief force in this country  for decades with enormous influence over House Representatives and Senators.   They are now tied up in bankruptcy which is good news for the American people. 

President Biden spoke from the White House and called on the senate to pass a ban on assault weapons and to close background check loopholes. He said doing so would be “common sense steps that will save lives in the future.   This is not and should not be a partisan issue — an American issue. We have to act. “

Republicans in  Congress remain opposed to taking any action on controlling guns.   Senator John Thune , number 2 Republican said, “ There is not a big appetite among our members to do things that seem to be addressing it, but don’t seem to be addressing the problem. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, spoke vehemently when he said, “ Shame on those who oppose passing gun control laws.  Shame!”

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> 

On March 6,  The Senate approval came after an all night session with the Democratic majority  of 50 voting  Aye  while the Republican minority  of 49 voted Nay.  It did not reflect Joe Biden’s  hope for  bi-partisan agreement.  It did cement his aim to bring aid to the people of the United States who have been suffering during the pandemic.

President Biden’s approach is in direct contrast to Donald Trump’s first economic effort in 2017, a tax cut to corporations and wealthy Americans.   

The New York Times reports in their cover article that “Researchers predict The Plan could become one of the most effective laws to fight poverty in a generation.”  It would cut child poverty in half and reduce the poverty rate for adults by more than a quarter. 

The  Plan is expected to help women and minorities in particular since they  have taken the brunt of job and income loss during the pandemic. 

The law provides a direct payment to unemployed workers from the federal government:  $1’400 for a single taxpayer and $2’800 for a married couple filing a joint return.

In addition, expanded unemployment benefits would be extended beyond September 6 at $300 a week. 

We have all seen the lines of cars waiting to get food boxes for their families.    We know in our communities that small businesses are closed and millions of workers have been out of work for more than a year .  In the cities, large stores are closed as well as restaurants that employed thousands of people. 

The American Rescue Plans was designed to help people who have been suffering since the Covid Pandemic struck.   It is a bottom up approach that economists and political advisors designed to eradicate  HUNGER in America.   Years ago , I wrote a column that dealt with the label: Food Insecurity which is now in use again.   I suggest they return to the truthful label HUNGER  until it is no longer necessary in The United States,.

Let’s all give a shout out to President Joseph Biden for his leadership  and  determination to eliminate Covid from our land ASAP.  It was his first goal when he was inaugurated and remains with his emphasis now on vaccinations for every American within one hundred days.   

……………………………………………..Joyce S. Anderson

Many of us are spending long periods of time in our houses or apartments during the Pandemic.  I began watching different music performances on my computer several weeks ago.  The choices are endless ,  opera singers, mob flash dances in foreign countries , folk music performers ….. take your pick.  All are on YouTube.  Each has number of viewers at date first posted.  Many are in the millions.

Today,  I  saw and heard  some of my favorites by typing the titles into Google Search.  Titles;  Tchaikovsky Flashwaltz at Hadassah Hospital. 

‘’Ten year old opera singer stuns Jay Leno’’.  Several of this young girl  on America Has Talent  are there. All are amazing and delightful to watch.

“AMAZING.  Flashmob started by one little girl, Ode To Joy”    European setting.  Viewed by 13 million.

Please let me and other potential viewers know the names of your favorites If you decide to try this on one of these long cold days with no sun.

I often play  Nessun Dorma  before I go to sleep.

The young singer is Emane Beesha who is the ten year old who was competing in  Jay Leno’s America Talent show.   There are several of her as she first enters and proceeds from the first audition to the finals.  You will love the result.

Please share any favorites you find with me and I will forward to other readers on my next blog.

‘’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’Joyce S. Anderson

It will soon be only three weeks until January 20 when we have a New President and hope for a complete change in our government. Joe Biden has already chosen many experienced and qualified women and men to lead the country. Kamala Harris was his first enormous choice to appoint people who would look like America.

Today, I have chosen to post a gift to my readers…. a book that tickles the mind and is fun to read.

“An Exaltation of Larks” is the fascinating collection by James Lipton, first published in l968. Lipton, an American writer, poet, composer and actor, traced the tradition in the English language back to the 15th century when groups of animals, fish and birds associated with hunting were given names to epitomize their salient characteristics. Young gentlemen were taught the precise designation of their quarry. We are familiar with some: a pride of lions, a plague of locusts and a litter of pups. The magic of this book is in the hundreds of collective nouns that identify the essence of the group to the reader for the first time — and the witty engravings by Grandville, a 19th century French lithographer, that accompany most of the terms and the text.

Here are a few groups of birds to whet your appetite:
A parliament of owls.
An ostentation of peacocks.
A bouquet of pheasants.
A murder of crows.
A siege of herons.
A brood of hens.
An exaltation of larks.

Skylarks climb together high into the heavens while uttering their song — thus the poetic comment of exaltation. In the interesting Introduction to the book, Lipton traces the history from the 15th century to the present. He writes, “Obviously, at one time or another, every one of these terms had to be invented — and it is equally obvious that much imagination, wit and semantic ingenuity has always gone into that invention. The terms are too full of charm and poetry to suppose that their inventors were unaware of the possibilities open to them, and unconscious of the fun and beauty they were creating. What we have in these terms is clearly the end result of a game that amateur semanticists have been playing for over five hundred years.”

Lipton breaks down the terms into six families according to the original inspiration:

Onomatopoeia – A Murmuration of Starlings. A Gaggle of Geese.

Characteristic (the largest family) – A Leap of Leopards. A Skulk of Foxes.

Appearance – A Knot of toads. An Army of Caterpillars

Habitat- A Shoal of Bass. A Nest of Rabbits.

Comment (pro or con) – A Richness of Martens. A Cowardice of Curs.

Error – A School of Fish, originally a “shoal”. Part III of the book may be the most fun for readers since Lipton drew upon the Book of St. Albans, compiled in 1486, which included seventy references to people and life in the 15th century in addition to the birds, animals and fish for the hunt. The social references, scattered through the St. Albans Book, were filled with wit and commentary about the manners and morals of the day.
The intriguing engravings accompanying these human figures capture the meaning and nuances in each term. Here are samples from the 15th century:
A Herd of Harlots.
A Converting of Preachers.
A Doctrine of Doctors.
An Incredulity of Cuckolds.
A Riffraff of Knaves.
A Drift of Fishermen.
An Eloquence of Lawyers.
A Worship of Writers. (Ah. I love that.) Lipton closes his delightful book with a challenge to the reader to join the “game” and create clever terms that illuminate intrinsic qualities of a group. He says, about playing the game, “like Tom Sawyer whitewashing the fence. I found that spectators didn’t stay spectators for long. If you should feel the urge, there are more brushes in the pail.”
…………………………………. Joyce S, Anderson

“An Exaltation of Larks” is available on line at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com.
Enjoy!

This was the New York Times headline on Saturday, December 12. The nine Justices were in agreement that Texas had “no standing” to interfere with the settled election results in four other states. It was an unsigned brief order , the sharpest rebuke the High Court could have issued.
As I read it, I thought the message they sent Attorney General Paxton of Texas was, in plain language: The election results in these four states are none of your business!
Thus, the seventeen attorney generals from states that had supported Trump and the over one hundred Republican House members who signed support of the law suit could be in trouble during the next Mid term elections. That is the political fall out for each of them. Back a loser, you become a loser.

Speaking of losers…. We know from many inside sources that Donald J. Trump considers the very word LOSER… the worst word in the English language. His niece and biographer have confirmed that. His very brief tweet in response to the High Court decision was an indication of the impact he felt. He usually writes long treatises when he loses a case in the courts, deriding the judge as he did at the start of his time in office.
Friday was also the third day that President Elect Joseph Biden presented a group of appointees to his Cabinet and administration. In a formal setting, he introduced women and men who will hold important positions. He then gave each the opportunity to come to the central lectern and speak briefly while their qualifications were projected on a screen.
Biden has said that his Cabinet and other officials would “look like America”. They each were superbly qualified, having served in Obama’s presidency or earlier. They were women and men of color in this group as were two groups he had introduced previously. Susan Rice , former Ambassador to The United Nations, was the sixth who spoke. She was a power in the position and took my breath away with her speech.
Finally Vice President Elect Kamala Harris concluded the event. She spoke as she always does with authority and passion about the people on the stage who will work for the American people… the veterans and the civilian families suffering during the pandemic. Monday, the election results will be certified by The Electoral College.
All the speakers on stage wore masks which they removed only when each spoke. Joe Biden has emphasized that during the first one hundred days mask wearing in the United States will be mandatory in public.
He has also targeted the first one hundred days as a time when vaccinations against Covid 19 will be a priority. He has consistently emphasized the importance of controlling the pandemic in every appearance he has made.
This is in contrast to the many super spreader events Donald Trump has held at the White House and his rallies to protest the elections results and claim it was “stolen and he was “cheated”.
It is very unfortunate that 74 million Americans who voted for Trump have heard this repeated endlessly from him. Supporters have threatened election officials in states that voted for Biden like Michigan and Wisconsin. They arrived at their houses at night, carrying signs and guns , honking horns outside their homes.
Joseph Biden Jr. won over 80 million votes. This year was the largest total turnout in any National election. The mail in ballots were the key to victory, including those cast by us in New Jersey who avoided voting in person because of the pandemic. Amen!
………………………………Joyce S. Anderson ………………….

New York Times, Sunday, November 5, 2020:

BIDEN BEATS TRUMP  RACE FINALLY CALLED AFTER RECORD TURNOUT;  CHAOTIC TERM ENDS WITH RARE INCUMBENT LOSS.

These Banner headlines were above the picture of Former Vice President Biden addressing the nation with Kamala Harris standing a few feet away on his right.   “Harris Will Become The Country’s First Female Vice President” was next to the picture. 

The days since Election Day on Tuesday, November 3, found millions  of Americans glued to TV watching the results coming in from the states. Throughout Wednesday, Thursday , Friday and Saturday….we watched the big boards and numbers mounting in different states.   It became clear that Joe Biden and Donald Trump were each receiving millions of votes.   This would not be a landslide for either candidate.   There were in person votes and those that had been mailed in.  All had to be counted by teams of workers in every state.

 Due to the pandemic, many states e.g. New Jersey had mailed ballots to all their registered voters.  We filled ours in early as did millions of others.   Lines grew in states where voters wanted to bring their completed forms to the appropriate drop box locations.  It should be noted that certain states like Texas limited the number of boxes.  Texas stood out with their decision to have ONE BOX in Harris County that included Houston with over a million people.  Republicans controlled this decision.  

This election will have the largest participation of registered voters ever.   Joe Biden won the popular vote and the electoral college vote.  The final count has not been reached as I  write.  He won over 74 million votes to Donald Trump’s 70 million.   Biden won the Blue Wall of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania which put him over the top in the Electoral College.  270 is the number that is required of the winner.  He won other states to reach 290.

There are still several states where counting  has not been completed : Georgia,  North Carolina . Biden is leading in Georgia ; Trump in North Carolina.  Georgia has 16 votes  which would give Biden a final count of 3 06.

Sunday was a day when celebrations erupted in cities across the country.  Joe Biden had been confirmed  president elect and hundreds of thousands of American men , women and children were in the streets  dancing,  singing, displaying their excitement and approval.   The TV coverage was in New York, San Francisco,  Miami, Chicago and D.C.  It lasted into the evening when Biden and Harris spoke to the nation.  She wore a white pant suit in remembrance of the Suffragists and said,  “ I have the great honor to introduce the President Elect of The United States, Joe Biden”  The Crowd erupted in thunderous applause.   He spoke of healing the nation  and said, “ I will be the president of those who voted for me and those who did not.”

His entire speech stressed healing the divisions in the nation and conquering the Covid19 pandemic. At the close,  Fireworks exploded in the sky spelling out the number 46 for his presidency  of the United States.  Then he was joined by his wife, Dr. Jill Biden and Kamala by her husband.  The four raised their arms in front of the stage in the traditional close to an acceptance speech. 

Epilogue:

It is now Tuesday and Donald Trump has refused to concede the election.  McConnell  and most Republican senators are supporting him in his right to investigate fraud at the polls.   This shocking event has never happened before in our presidential elections.   The fraud commission Trump created after he was elected ended in no findings.  He had lost the popular vote to Hillary Clinton and that will remain on record.

We are facing a strange time during the weeks before January 20 when Joe Biden  and Kamala Harris will be sworn in before millions of rejoicing Americans and the world.  Usually the current president rides with the president elect.  It  would be fitting for Joe Biden to invite Barack Obama as his riding companion. 

While the ceremony takes place, the tradition is that the White House staff prepares the living quarters completely in the hours before the  new president and his wife return.  If Trump refuses to leave, it would be perfect if Colonel Alexander Vindamin and his twin brother also a Colonel who worked in the White House, perp march Trump out.  That reverses the way they had to leave.  Seems appropriate to me.

………………………………Joyce S. Anderson

The Forbes 400
The latest issue of Forbes Magazine lists the 400 richest billionaires in the United States. To qualify, the men and women must have made at least 2.1 billion the past three years.
Here are the top four:
Jeff Bezos Amazon age 65 179 billion
Bill Gates Microsoft 61 171 billion
Mark Zuckerberg 36 Facebook 85 billion
Warren Buffett 90 Berkshire Hathaway 73.5 billion

Reading the list, we find some very familiar names like Oprah Winfrey and the Koch brothers. Many are from areas of life that do not make the new s magazines.
I listened to a Forbes spokesperson on Morning Joe and heard a shocking statistic. The 400 are at the top of a total 630 billionaires. And only TEN give a set amount of their total wealth on a regular established basis to others who are at the other end of the income level.
I asked my husband to guess the number, and he paused before he said ALL. It seemed obvious to him and reflects his values .
Warren Buffett is famous as the Nebraskan who drives his Chevrolet and lives a simple life far from the hub of finance at Wall Street in New York City. He is known for allocating a distinct percent of his earnings to causes that benefit men and women at the lower end of the income range.
Bill and Melinda Gates are also known for the causes they have funded on a regular basis in African countries to wipe out malaria and other killer diseases.
We are all in the last weeks before the presidential election. It is important to learn the economic views and plans of both candidates. We have four years to judge the current president, Donald Trump. We also have eight years to judge his opponent , Joe Biden who served with Barack Obama.
In their speeches, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have said, “ Health Care is on the Ballot”… They know that Donald Trump and the Republican Senate have tried 70 times to overturn Obama Care… the ACA act. Each time, they have failed.
On November 10, one week after the election, the fate of Obamacare will be heard at The Supreme Court. Amy Coney Barrett will have been confirmed by the Republican majority in the Senate and sworn in by the president at the White House to become a new Justice. That event will probably become another “super spreader” of Covid 19 since Trump does not approve of masks at the White House.
Under Donald Trump’s presidency, there has been an increase in the difference between the wealthy and the poor in The United States. That is also on the ballot this year. Under Trump tax breaks went to the wealthy. The article in Forbes brought that front and center in my mind. A Biden victory will lead to changes in our future tax and monetary legislation.
I started with the Forbes 400 and it led to the most important presidential election in modern history.
Stay safe and VOTE…. All our lives and future are at stake.
…………………………………………………..Joyce S. Anderson

This was the week of hearings for the Supreme Court
seat held by Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The judge’s husband
and children were present in the audience each of the
three days. She would be the first Supreme Court justice
to have school age children.

The setting was two rows of senators in an open V shape
with reporters sitting on the floor inside the V. Major
Cable channels carried the confirmation hearing live
without any commercial interruption. Americans could
also watch on their computers.

The Senate Judiciary Committee members, Republican
and Democratic, took turns asking questions of Judge
Barrett. She took the traditional standing oath to
respond to their questions from Lindsey Graham, Chair of
the Judiciary Committee.

The stakes are high for Judge Barrett and for both
parties. Donald Trump has nominated two current
justices, Gorsuch and Kavanaugh. Barrett arrives with
the history of Merrick Garland being nominated by
Barack Obama when Justice Scalia died.

Senator McConnell refused to allow confirmation
hearings and interviews for eight months . He declared
that the American people should choose the president
who will nominate the successor to Justice Ginsburg.

Now, only weeks and days before the November 3
election, he announced hours after Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsburg died, that he would schedule interviews and a
confirmation hearing as soon as Donald Trump sent him
a nominee for her seat.

That nominee was high on the Federalist Society list for
the president to make his choice, Amy Coney Barrett.
Trump held a large meeting in the Rose Garden at the
White House to introduce her. She stood next to him as
her husband and seven children were seated in the first
row next to Melania Trump.

It should be noted that political events should not be
held in the White House. Also that seats were close
together and very few people wore masks. It became
known as a 11SUperspreader event” with many attendees
testing positive for Covid 19 in the days that followed.

Judge Barrett was a Notre Dame University law professor
with a sterling academic record when she was confirmed
by the Senate for a seat as an Appeals Court Judge. She
served for the first three years of Trump’s presidency on
that court, a relatively brief time compared with most
judges who start at the District Level and then reach
Appeals Court level.

During the three days of her hearings, there was a sharp
contrast between questions from Republican and
Democratic senators. This was expected since the
circumstances of her appointment were controversial as
well as the emphasis that Trump and McConnell had
placed on having a shift in the Liberal v Conservative
blocs on the High Court.

At present there is no longer a split of four liberals and
four convervative with Chief Justice John Roberts the
Swing vote on certain important cases like ObamaCare
and DACA . Judge Barrett was a conservative in her
rulings on the Appeals Court. Gorsuch and Kavanaugh
are also conservatives. Thus the Supreme Court would
become six –three. Breyer, Sotomayor and Kagan are
the liberals …. Thomas, Alito , Gorsuch, Kavanaugh .
Barrett, and Chief Justice Roberts who usually votes
Conservative.

On the Supreme Court docket in early November is the
Trump administration case to eliminate Obamacare. This
is the seventieth time 70 Donald Trump has tried to
destroy ObamaCare. First he tried for years to have
Congress destroy it . In that dramatic finale, John Me
Cain returned to the Senate when they were voting.
Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski had already voted No.
Only one more No vote was needed. Me Cain came in
from his sick bed … walked to the desk and turned his
thumb down. It was one of the most dramatic votes ever
taken by the Senate.

Democratic senators stressed Health Care for the
American people in their questions to Amy Coney
Barrett. ObamaCare serves millions of Americans and
losing all aspects of it would be a crushing blow to their
lives. The senators each dealt with that in their
questions. Some had pictures of their people and told
their stories. Others stressed the pre existing conditions
coverage that they would lose if Obamacare were
declared invalid. Issues of law were discussed by other
Democrats in depth. Senator Kamala Harris, who is Joe
Biden’s running mate ended the third day with an
impassioned emphasis on Obamacare to the American
people.

Republican senators stressed Barrett’s academic record
and offered rebuttals to Democratic comments. Several .
including Chairman Lindsey Graham, have very close
races in their states and must weigh the Obamacare
argument at home. Graham has another problem. He
said at the time Merrick Garland was denied his seat that
it was wrong to do that. He is being shown on cable
news saying “You can quote me on that.”

Amy Coney Barrett had been one of Antonin Scalia’s
clerks. She knew that Merrick Garland was Chief of the
important D.C. Circuit Court. She also said that he should
have been given his seat on The Supreme Court .

……………………………………………………………

At present, we don’t know how the entire Senate will
vote after the Judiciary Committee takes their vote. It
does not appear that the Democrats have four
Republican members who will vote No. It will be a close
coun~ but there will be the required number to appoint
Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court.

—-Joyce S. Anderson