This version of our government is not popular. Republican senators who will vote for Barrett represent 14.3 million fewer Americans than the Democratic senators who oppose her confirmation. Schumer today warned his Republican colleagues: “The majority has trampled over norms, rules, standards, honor, values, any of them that could possibly stand in its monomaniacal pursuit to put someone on the court who will take away the rights of so many Americans.”

On this week's MOYERS ON DEMOCRACY, Bill Moyers speaks to Lisa Graves about what's at stake in rushing Amy Coney Barrett's nomination through the Senate. Barrett is a young judge who has been nominated with the understanding that Republicans are looking for her to cast a vote for Trump from the bench.

Both of the last two Republican presidents—Bush and Trump-- have lost the popular vote, and yet each nominated two Supreme Court justices, who have been confirmed by the votes of senators who represent a minority of the American people. The confirmation of a fifth justice in this way will create a solid majority on the court, which can then unwind the legal framework that a majority of Americans still supports.

Trump has no legal right to delay the federal elections without the consent of Congress, but his lack of legal authority has rarely stopped him. We know he will do almost anything to work the system and stay in power, and he thinks he can rely on the conservative majority in the Supreme Court to back him up.

Democracy in America has been a series of narrow escapes. We may be running out of luck, and no one is coming to save us. For that, we have only ourselves.