SUPREME COURT // Senate Democrats continue their obstructionist pattern. Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee forced a one-week delay in sending the nomination of Judge Gorsuch to the full Senate. http://cvote.it/2ncs5V3
SUPREME COURT // Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer needs 41 Democrats to maintain a filibuster. Here’s an ominous sign that they might get there: Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida announced that he would join Schumer’s filibuster. Back in 2006, Nelson was instrumental in breaking a filibuster of now-Justice Samuel Alito. http://cvote.it/2mKzKhb
HEALTH CARE // The battle lines on health care among Republicans isn’t even between moderates and the conservatives of the House Freedom Caucus. The real problem is apathy, says Peter Spiliakos. “For the average Republican, health care is nails on the chalk board. Tax cuts are a warm bath.” But he said Republicans need to step up, learn the issue, and pick a side in the fight. http://cvote.it/2mKH0d3
HEALTH CARE // The White House signaled a new tone Monday, indicating that President Trump could continue behind-the-scenes negotiations on healthcare, this time with lawmakers from both parties, even as Republicans publicly turn their attention away from Obamacare and to tax reform. “I don’t think we’ve seen the end of healthcare,” said White House press secretary Sean Spicer. http://cvote.it/2ncCNuM
TUESDAY TRIVIA // How many times (before 2017) has there been a filibuster of a Supreme Court nomination?
TRUMP // After the defeat of the health care bill, Democrats were crowing about how few accomplishments Donald Trump had racked up. But Washington Post writer James Hohmann (no Trump cheerleader) has an article detailing just how many different actions taken by President Trump have advanced his agenda — even if they get little media attention. http://cvote.it/2mKEZO2
CULTURE // Tristan Harris is on a mission to change Silicon Valley’s software practices that he says leads people to become addicted to their phones. (This article was published in November, but is making the rounds again lately, likely because of Lent.) http://cvote.it/2mKFfN6
CATHOLIC // When a Phoenix mother lost her eyesight due to a rare medical condition, she feared she would never be able to see her four children again. But then St. Charbel came to her aid. http://cvote.it/2nckSER
CATHOLIC // A year after her death, Mother Angelica is remembered as a ‘forerunner’ of the New Evangelization. http://cvote.it/2ncza8f
TRIVIA ANSWER // The filibustering of a Supreme Court nomination has only been attempted four times before 2017, only once successfully, against Abe Fortas nomination to be promoted to Chief Justice in 1968 (he was already an associate justice). The other three filibusters failed: Against William Rehnquist in 1971, and against Rehnquist’s promotion to Chief Justice in 1986. The fourth time was against Samuel Alito in 2006. (Bonus trivia: Barack Obama is the only president to have filibustered a Supreme Court nominee while serving in the Senate.)
SAINT // Saint Catharine of Bologna – http://cvote.it/dailysaint
DAILY MASS // “The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.” (Ps 46:8) – http://cvote.it/Daily-Readings
WOW // Ibn Ali Miller, the man who broke up a fight between two teens in a now viral video, was honored in Atlantic City on Wednesday. Choking back tears, he used his moment in the spotlight to honor someone else – his mother. http://cvote.it/2ncyxvf