The Vice-President debate like the others was stifled by foolish time limits. Sound bites are rarely educational but can be illuminating. Vice-President Mike Pence offers a calming and soothing defense of Donald Trump that reaches out to independents. Many Republican pols in my opinion wish the former Indiana Governor were the Party leader, yet another reason to mock The Donald.

The time limits impede any understanding of who is the most thoughtful person. Sound bites limits us to impressions, not the in-depth exploration of issues for example, whether slavery should expand the issue that fueled the Lincoln Douglas debate.
Senator Kamala Harris exchanged barbs about Covid-19 policies backing Biden’s plan, but Pence refused to answer this $64 question: what should Indiana do if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade?
He had no answer to questions that have animated the GOP for decades. Democrats, they sneer, are baby killers who would permit abortion up to the moment of birth as Pence falsely insinuated. But he turned mealy mouthed when asked what policies would the Republicans pursue.
Should Judge Amy Coney Barrett be confirmed and overturn this decision, Pence’s hesitation reveals that Republicans fret about this new reality. Woman living on low incomes, often oppose abortion, particularly people of color. They mutter abortion kills our children. What they want is money to make parenthood possible. If Pence’s party insists women carry their pregnancy to term will they also provide for the welfare of the child? Surely a tough question for Republicans. A Conservative takeover of the Court does not muzzle the Democratic Party where women’s right to choose is orthodoxy enforced by primary voters.
Perhaps Indiana will adopt laws enhancing women’s rights. Republican women get abortions and understand they are better off with that as an option. Overthrowing Roe creates political battles state by state; don’t assume the bad guys win (and remember the Roe protections are thin, Republicans already marginalize reproductive medicine in many states especially if offered by Planned Parenthood -improvement is possible.)
Should the Conservatives dump the Affordable Care Act, Biden’s promise to improve the law is muted. Once more, Medicare for all is on the agenda. Perhaps a Democratic Congress will create national health insurance insisting that procedures like giving drugs to users, reproductive justice for women, and medical supervision of prisons are national responsibilities.
Judges influence Congress they don’t control it. Writing the laws is superior to interpreting them. Packing the Court may be politically impossible, but Franklin Delano Roosevelt proved that the Supreme Court bends if the public votes against their decision. He lost the Court packing fight but won the war. After that, the Supreme Court turned liberal.
Barrett’s confirmation will not be a crushing blow, it is more properly a defeat. Current polls suggest Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress next year making a Conservative Court more a hinderance than a strait jacket.
A 6-3 majority of the Court has conceded that discriminating against the LGBT community is discrimination based on sex and the laws protecting women protect this community. Conservative draw a sharp distinction between laws and the constitution. They dislike using Constitutional rights, but like to interpret laws strictly. In all probability a Democratic Congress will extend these gains. Perhaps it will lead to a 5-4 majority on the Court sustaining these rights. The Democrats will back the queer community just as they fight for women’s rights.
A Biden landslide will sidetrack the Republicans and leave Democrats to sort out what policies should govern the nation. The next Congress will not roll over and let the Supreme Court cripple our liberties. It will look to enhance the progress made in recent decades. The most important task is voting Democrats into office. Popular enthusiasm is high. Come November 3, the sun may shine on the U.S.A.