I think we know the outcome already. Republicans control the Senate, and unless something very unexpected pops out of Amy Coney Barrett’s history, they’ll confirm her as our next Supreme Court Justice. With a foregone conclusion like that, why prolong the process? Why even hold hearings?

The Senate confirmed Abe Fortas in just two weeks in 1965, and Warren Burger in 17 days in 1969. It took just 19 days to confirm John Paul Stevens in 1975. What would happen if Republicans made a similar lightning-quick decision this time?

The Aftermath, If the Senate Rushes the Vote

The aftermath would be predictably explosive, that’s what. Democrats would be spitting mad. They’d cry foul. They’d accuse Republicans of ramrodding the process. They’d make dark accusations of swamp gas spilling out Barrett’s basement windows, but “the Republicans wouldn’t let us call the witnesses we needed!” They’d fume over the Court’s takeover by conservatives, calling it the end of the rule of law, the demise of democracy as we know it.

Major media will echo all that. They’ll call for investigations, amidst dark, unsubstantiated rumors of illegal activities behind the scenes.

The streets will erupt in leftist anger. November’s election will be called into question.

That’s what I expect if Senate Republicans rush the decision. It won’t be pretty.

The Process, If the Senate Drags It Out

Democrats want the process to drag on as long as possible. They can’t expect to push it past the end of this Congress, but that won’t stop them from trying. Meanwhile they’ll do to Amy Coney Barrett what they did to Brett Kavanaugh.

They’ll spend megabucks on private investigators digging up dirt on her. If that fails — as I certainly expect it to — they’ll spend more bucks on investigators finding people who’ll invent dirt on her. They’ll call her virtues dirt — her motherhood and her religious beliefs. They’ll take all that dirt into Committee and pour water over it until it becomes an opaque, incomprehensible, muddy mess.

We Americans watching it will come close to drowning again in a rancid river of mud. Barrett herself will be beat as close to metaphorical death as they can legally beat her, and when they can’t beat her any more, they’ll take off after her husband, children, and friends.

Nevertheless, since the Republicans hold the majority, Judge Barrett will be confirmed and seated as Justice Barrett, and if the country holds together, we’ll go on to the next thing, the election.

The Aftermath, If the Senate Drags It Out

Still for all that, the aftermath will be predictably explosive. Democrats will be spitting mad. They’ll cry foul. They’ll accuse Republicans of ramrodding the process. They’ll make dark accusations of swamp gas spilling out of Barrett’s basement windows, but “the Republicans wouldn’t let us call the witnesses we needed!” They’ll fume over the Court’s takeover by conservatives, calling it the end of the rule of law, the demise of democracy as we know it.

Major media will echo all that. They’ll call for investigations, amidst dark, unsubstantiated rumors of illegal activities behind the scenes. The streets will erupt in leftist anger. November’s election will be called into question.

That’s what I expect if Senate Republicans let the decision drag on for weeks, as they did with Kavanaugh. It won’t be pretty.

Why Drag It Out?

Let’s go straight to the aftermath and get it over with.

No, you’re not seeing double. Long, draw-out hearings or lighting-quick confirmation, I expect exactly the same aftermath either way. Except there’d be more, if the Senate lets the Democrats do again what they did to Kavanaugh.

Motherhood would be called into question. Religion itself would be dragged through a swamp. In fact, all of America would be dragged through muck, especially the family of a qualified woman whose one great desire is to serve her country.

I say, let’s skip that part. Let’s go straight to the aftermath and get it over with. We’ll come out cleaner for it.

Tom Gilson (@TomGilsonAuthor) is a senior editor with The Stream and the author or editor of six books, including the recently released Too Good To Be False: How Jesus’ Incomparable Character Reveals His Reality.