If the nickname “Sleepy Joe” ever loses its luster, perhaps we should start referring to former Vice President Joe Biden as “Slippery Joe.” The Democratic presidential candidate seems to have mastered the art of dodging questions and concealing his intentions regarding his plans should he win in November. 

On Monday, Biden was asked several questions about his approach to the Supreme Court should he become president. As he is wont to do, Biden addressed the questions by refusing to answer them. As RedState’s Nick Arama pointed out, “Biden refuses to answer, saying it would allow Trump to change the subject. As he, Biden, tries to change the subject. He’s literally not ruling out completely upending all norms and being in favor of Democrats grabbing all kinds of power if he were elected.”

But it was the question regarding packing the Supreme Court that is most interesting given the recent threats to do so coming from high-profile Democratic lawmakers. In an interview with WBAY-TV in Wisconsin, the host asked Biden if he would consider increasing the number of seats on the court if Republicans pushed forward with their effort to replace Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who passed away last weekend.

“It’s a legitimate question, but let me tell you why I’m not going answer. … It will shift the focus,” Biden responded. He continued, stating that President Trump avoids discussing relevant issues. “He always tries to change the subject,” he said. “Let’s say I answer that question. Then the whole debate’s going to be ‘well, Biden said or didn’t say. Biden said he would or wouldn’t.’“

Apparently, the former vice president doesn’t believe that people will common sense will notice the fact that he brought up Trump supposedly distracting from the issues to avoid discussing a pertinent issue. It’s yet another pot-and-kettle situation, isn’t it? 

However, Biden did weigh in on this issue in July 2019 when he assured Americans that he did not wish to pack the Supreme Court if elected. “We’ll live to rue that day,” he said. 

Mr. Biden had said in July 2019 that he didn’t want to pack the high court. It’s worth pointing out that his running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA), he stated that she is open to expanding the number of seats on the court. 

So what is the real reason why Biden refused to give his position on the matter? Perhaps he is attempting to maintain his balancing act between the two factions of the Democratic Party. Throughout the campaign, it became clear that the candidate is toeing a precarious line between alienating the far-left progressive wing or the moderate establishment. His campaign is certainly aware of the fact that he cannot afford to lose either camp if he wants to defeat Trump. 

If Biden were to echo his statements from last year, far-left voters will be less likely to show up and cast their votes for him in November. As is stands, they are already not too enthused about the former vice president. Conversely, if he were to change his tune and say he’d be willing to consider packing the court, he might lose support from the moderate wing. This could also be the reason why he refuses to release his list of potential Supreme Court nominees as well. 

The question concerning the court came amid widespread calls on the left to abolish the filibuster and add more seats to the Supreme Court if President Trump moves forward with appointing a new justice before the election. They are accusing the Republicans of hypocrisy due to their refusal to go through the confirmation process for Judge Merrick Garland in 2016 because it was an election year. 

The GOP balked at the claims of hypocrisy, pointing out that if Democrats were in a similar situation, they would be doing the same thing. They’re right, of course. It’s obvious that if the Democrats held the White House and the Senate, they would not hesitate to replace Ginsburg. 

As it stands, the Democrats are pulling out all the stops to prevent Republicans from filling the seat. They have threatened to pack the courts once they are in control. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have both indicated that they might be willing to launch another impeachment fiasco to stall the confirmation process. 

But so far, none of their tactics seem to be working. The president and Republican senators remain undaunted. Now that Sen. Mitt Romney has stated that he supports going through the confirmation process to replace Ginsburg, which means the GOP will likely have the votes needed to approve Trump’s nominee. In the end, this is yet another battle that the Democrats are destined to lose. 

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