I've been taking it all in since the heartbreaking death of Ruth Bader Ginsberg on Friday night. I've read the pieces, I've seen the narrative on social media, I've exchanged emails and texts with friends. I don't know what's going to happen -- I have no idea -- but I will say this: There's an insidious argument that surfaces every time we're put in a situation like this, and the narrative always goes something like this: Democrats are "p*ssies" and, in our political fights, we should be more like Republicans.

Go. Fuck. Yourself.

Democrats don't always win -- and lately, it feels like we've lost way more times than not -- but it's not for lack of trying, it's not for lack of determination, it's not for lack of resolve, and it's not for lack of intelligence. There was nothing soft about the way we went at the Kavanaugh confirmation. We threw everything we had at it -- and, like Clarence Thomas, that man will always have an asterisk next to his name -- but at the end of the day, Susan Collins is a spineless, feckless politician of the worst order, and no amount of money, or marching, or phone calls was going to change that. Hell, we raised $3.7 million for Susan Collins' primary opponent because of that vote before we even knew who that primary opponent would be. There was absolutely nothing else that we could do. Nothing.

You know who else wasn't soft? The hundreds of thousands of women who marched at the first Women's March after Trump's inauguration in January. The hundreds of thousands of people who protested the Muslim bans, and who pressured the Senate not to repeal the ACA, and the way that millions of protestors lined up behind Black activists around the country to orchestrate Black Lives Matter protests for weeks around the country during a pandemic. On Friday night, after RBG's death, Democrats shattered ActBlue's fundraising record. SHATTERED.

Democrats aren't weak. Democrats play by the rules, and it is such bullshit to say, "We should be more like Republicans." What does that even mean? We should cheat more? We should be more hypocritical? We should lie more? We should ignore facts? We should float more conspiracy theories? We should embarrass ourselves in front of the rest of the world? We should throw our friends under the bus to save ourselves? We should use fear and panic to keep ourselves in power? We should ignore science? We should back out on our promises? We should behave as fascists? Honest to God, if those are your preferred tactics -- if winning is more important than being right -- go join the goddamn Republican party because those aren't "political tactics," that is a goddamn style of governing.

I don't know what's going to happen with the Supreme Court. Nobody does. Ultimately, it probably won't come down to the actions of the Democrats, but the actions of a select few Republican Senators, some of whom will be completely immune to political pressures, because no amount of money or marching will change their minds. They will vote their political interests, which is what Susan Collins has done. She has vowed to oppose replacing Ginsberg before November, not because it is the right thing to do, but because it is the only chance she has at political survival. That's what Republicans do: That's weak. That's craven. They serve no one and nothing but their own political interests, so no: I have no interests whatsoever belonging to a party like that. I'd much rather belong to the party that has taken to the streets by the millions over the last four years to hold their middle fingers up to up the powers that be. So go ahead, call Warren, or AOC, or Katie Porter, or Ayanna, or Ilhan, or Bernie, or Tammy Duckworth "weak," because they will f**king step on your necks.