Anyone with a functioning brain was confused Tuesday morning upon hearing ABC legal analyst Sunny Hostin argue how Democrats adding more justices to the Supreme Court was actually "unpacking" the court.
But upon being corrected by guest host Bari Weiss, Hostin doubled down on her doublespeak with the aid of fellow liberal co-host Whoopi Goldberg (with Joy Behar was off for the day).
The hosts were discussing Amy Coney Barrett’s swearing-in ceremony last night. After admitting she was “brilliant,” Hostin went right into bashing her:
That being said, it was really odd that she even sort of participated in the pomp and circumstance that we saw yesterday. She didn't owe President Trump anything. She didn't have to be on the White House grounds, especially after the super spreader event of her appointment at the Rose Garden. I thought it was poor form. I thought it showed a tremendous lack of judgment.
Before she gave this doozy of an answer about what Democrats packing the court means:
I think that her appointment is really going to change the way the Supreme Court is going to -- not only handle cases, but the way the Supreme Court is going to look going forward. Because we all know the Republican party has been packing the Supreme Court for decades. They've been packing the judiciary for decades. Trump has put now three justices on the Supreme Court and just dozens and dozens of judges on the federal judiciary. I think what we'll see is perhaps the Democrats unpacking the Supreme Court so there's more of a balance because right now the Supreme Court does not reflect the values of America. The Supreme Court now reflects the minority of the values of America. That is important because it's supposed to really reflect what is a balance of American values, with a swing justice deciding sort of what the law is. That is not what we are seeing now. This is going to lead, I think, to an unpacking of court which may lead to 13 justices which would reflect the federal appeals courts around the country.
This legitimately confused guest co-host Bari Weiss, a former op-editor for the New York Times, who gently corrected her: "I'm confused about what Sunny's saying about packing and unpacking the court. Packing the court is about adding more justices to the bench which is something that people like AOC and Ilhan Omar is advocating for. Packing the court doesn't mean appointing justices that some people don't like."
Weiss also slammed Biden and his media enablers for trying to hide their plans on court packing from the American people:
I think one thing a lot of centrists and moderates are looking for is whether Joe Biden will have the strength to stand up to the left wing flank of his party. The fact that he has refused on the record to say whether or not he'll pack the court is very suspicious to some people. The fact that journalists aren't forcing him to answer that essential question and he’s saying he’ll only answer it after he wins is pretty ridiculous as far as I'm concerned.
But Hostin sanctimoniously lectured Weiss about how she was "wrong" about Democrats packing the court and it really was more of a figurative expression:
...[R]epublicans have been packing not only the federal judiciary. They have been packing the Supreme Court by design. That has been the Republican plan. In order to unpack the Supreme Court, meaning unpack the culture, unpack the values that are on the Supreme Court, in order to do that you would have to add either term limits, age limits or you would have to add justices which would then balance the Supreme Court which would lead to an unpacking. So I used that term very specifically because I was referring to Tom Rodgers' article in Newsweek which has been discussed very much.
Hostin went on to say Biden has answered the question, citing his "bipartisan commission," which Weiss called a "dodge." Whoopi stepped in to lecture Weiss: "I would point out he did actually answer this issue twice," she insisted before adding to the confusion some more.
Touting how Supreme Court justices have been impeached "several times" in this country, she contradicted her answer above by saying it was a good thing Biden hasn't answered the question:
One could impeach judges that have not stuck to the rules of being judges on the Supreme Court. That's been done several times. There's a lot of ways to balance stuff out. I'm quite happy he didn't answer. I'll tell you why and then we'll go to break. I'm glad he didn't answer because frankly he doesn't have to. You know, we ask a lot of questions. We want answers. We don't always get them. Now I don't think we're going to get them the way we want them now.
(By the way she's wrong: only one Supreme Court judge has ever been impeached and then acquitted by Senate, but that was 215 years ago!)
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Read the transcript below:
The View
10/27/2020
SUNNY HOSTIN: …[T]hat being said, it was really odd that she even sort of participated in the pomp and circumstance that we saw yesterday. She didn't owe President Trump anything. She didn't have to be on the White House grounds, especially after the super spreader event of her appointment at the Rose Garden. I thought it was poor form. I thought it showed a tremendous lack of judgment. I think that her appointment is really going to change the way the Supreme Court is going to -- not only handle cases, but the way the Supreme Court is going to look going forward. Because we all know the Republican party has been packing the Supreme Court for decades. They've been packing the judiciary for decades. Trump has put now three justices on the Supreme Court and just dozens and dozens of judges on the federal judiciary. I think what we'll see is perhaps the Democrats unpacking the Supreme Court so there's more of a balance because right now the Supreme Court does not reflect the values of America. The Supreme Court now reflects the minority of the values of America. That is important because it's supposed to really reflect what is a balance of American values, with a swing justice deciding sort of what the law is. That is not what we are seeing now. This is going to lead, I think, to an unpacking of court which may lead to 13 justices which would reflect the federal appeals courts around the country.
WHOOPI: Or some impeachments which is possible with Supreme Court judges. They also can be impeached. Bari, when you look at this, did you think this boy was a little quick or did you think I'm not sure she's the person or were you comfortable that she might be the person? We don't know.
BARI WEISS: I'm confused about what sunny's saying about packing and unpacking the court. Packing the court is about adding more justices to the bench which is something that people like AOC and Ilhan Omar is advocating for. Packing the court doesn't mean appointing justices that some people don't like. I think that's really where the debate is. Everybody knew that Amy Coney Barrett had the votes to get through. You can be angry at the Republicans for their hypocrisy with Merrick Garland vs. Amy Coney Barrett. But I think where the conversation is right now is whether or not the Democrats if they win the Senate, and if Joe Biden wins if they are going to fundamentally change the nature of the court as Roosevelt once tried to do. I think it's really interesting that there's tons of discussion about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, mourning her death, the anger that a lot of liberals and Democrats feel of Republicans not honoring her last wish. But In 2019 Ruth Bader Ginsburg was asked by Nina Totenberg at NPR if she believed in court packing, which was already in the ether at that point. She opposed it. She said nine is a very good number. I think one thing a lot of centrists and moderates are looking for is whether Joe Biden will have the strength to stand up to the left wing flank of his party. The fact that he has refused on the record to say whether or not he'll pack the court is very suspicious to some people. The fact that journalists aren't forcing him to answer that essential question and he’s saying he’ll only answer it after he wins is pretty ridiculous as far as I'm concerned.
[cross-talk]
HOSTIN: Can I correct Bari on something?
WHOOPI: Hold on one second. I think when Sunny was talking about packing the court, I think she was talking about the fact that the lower courts have been packed. I don't think she was talking about the Supreme Court. That's what I took from you Sunny.
SUNNY HOSTIN: I was talking about the Supreme Court.
WEISS: You were talking about the Supreme Court?
HOSTIN: You're wrong. I was in particular talking about the Supreme Court being packed. I use those words very specifically because if you look at an article in Newsweek written by a very good friend of mine and a legal scholar, Tom Rodgers, it's entitled "Unpacking the Supreme Court." That is again because Republicans have been packing not only the federal judiciary. They have been packing the Supreme Court by design. That has been the Republican plan. In order to unpack the Supreme Court, meaning unpack the culture, unpack the values that are on the Supreme Court, in order to do that you would have to add either term limits, age limits or you would have to add justices which would then balance the Supreme Court which would lead to an unpacking. So I used that term very specifically because I was referring to Tom Rodgers' article in Newsweek which has been discussed very much.
WEISS: I understand, but --
HOSTIN: To your other point Bari, about Joe Biden he answered that question. He said he was going to put together a coalition, a bipartisan coalition to study the issue of the Supreme Court.
BARI WEISS: But that's not answering the question.
HOSTIN: I think it is a good answer.
WEISS: It's not. It's a dodge.
HOSTIN: He's answering the question in a bipartisan way because he wants this country, not to be as divided as it has been. He wants to bring the country together. And a way to do that is to study the issue in a bipartisan way. I think that's the best answer that anyone has really provided.
WEISS: Studying the issue is great. When a presidential nominee says he's unwilling to answer the question -- the minute after Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed last night you had all of the most in my view -- where the energy is in the democratic party Ilhan Omar, AOC, I think Ayanna Pressley were tweeting about packing the Supreme Court. That's a live and relevant issue. And for the Democratic nominee to not answer it, I believe it's a dodge to talk about appointing a commission. That may be all well and good but he should have a straight answer to that just like RBG did.
WHOOPI: I would point out he did actually answer this issue twice. The fact that AOC and those young ladies -- they don't speak for the whole party.
WEISS: Agreed.
WHOOPI: Really there are lots of ways to shift this. One could impeach judges that have not stuck to the rules of being judges on the Supreme Court. That's been done several times. There's a lot of ways to balance stuff out. I'm quite happy he didn't answer. I'll tell you why and then we'll go to break. I'm glad he didn't answer because frankly he doesn't have to. You know, we ask a lot of questions. We want answers. But we don't always get them. Now I don't think we're going to get them the way we want them now.
WEISS: You don't think --
WHOOPI: This will go up to the bottom of it.
WEISS: You don't think the American people are entitled to an answer about that?
WHOOPI: I think they will get an answer when he's ready to give one, when he has the information he's comfortable sharing. No, I don't think that the American people are used now to getting answers to the questions we ask because we have an administration that doesn't ever answer a question. We'll be right right back.
