Chief Justice Roberts to Schumer: You threatening the Justices is inexcusable, and don't do it again

It’s too easy a game to play, and sometimes I think conservatives go to it too easily.

But if Donald Trump said anything even approximating what Charles Schumer said here . . . good Lord:

Chief Justice John Roberts publicly chastised Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Wednesday over comments Schumer made outside the Supreme Court as the justices were hearing a case on abortion rights.

Schumer, D-N.Y., suggested that President Donald Trump’s court appointees, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, “won’t know what hit” them if they vote to uphold abortion restrictions. He spoke during a rally on the sidewalk in front of the court building.

“I want to tell you, Gorsuch, I want to tell you, Kavanaugh, you have released the whirlwind, and you will pay the price,” Schumer said.

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The craziest thing about this is that, while the case in question involves abortion, it’s hardly an overturn-Roe-v-Wade type of case. It involves the question of whether Louisiana can require doctors at abortion clinics to have admitting privileges at area hospitals. That is a common requirement for physician practices, and pro-abortion groups have unsuccessfully sued to get the law thrown out in Louisiana.

The Supremes are actually hearing an appeal to a decision that upheld the law, which means the worst that can happen from Schumer’s perspective is that the status quo is maintained. It’s weird that he’s choosing this particular case to breath fire and level threats.

But maybe Schumer thinks that’s what the Democrats’ pro-abort base is demanding, or maybe he just thinks it’s politically necessary to rail against Gorsuch and Kavanaugh because they’re the unholy spawns of the Trump presidency.

Whatever Schumer’s motivation, I wonder what “price” he thinks Gorsuch and Kavanaugh would pay for ruling to uphold the law, or more to the point, what price he thinks he can convince the outraged masses Gorsuch and Kavanaugh might pay.

I realize the current crop of congressional Democrats is impeachment happy, but that option didn’t really work out too well for Democrats when they tried it against Trump, and they’re obviously not going to be able to remove sitting Supreme Court Justices for the way they vote on a case.

I doubt Schumer actually meant to imply violence, but if you can’t impeach and there’s no other professional sanction available as an option, it is kind of understandable that people might infer something pretty untoward.

By the way, Schumer claimed after the rebuke that Roberts was “biased,” and that he was actually aiming the threat at Republican senators and not at Kavanaugh and Gorsuch. BS. Here’s what he said:

WATCH: Democrat Senator Chuck Schumer threatens U.S. Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.

“You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price! You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions!”pic.twitter.com/e1qKzocJDj

— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) March 4, 2020

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It’s never wise to take much that Chuck Schumer says seriously. He’s an irresponsible jerk who will say whatever he thinks will fly in the moment, and will backtrack with no shame because he’s that sure he won’t really be called to account for doing so.

A written rebuke from the Chief Justice is a rare thing, and requires quite an act of irresponsibility to happen.

Chuck Schumer is just the guy to make it happen.