Democrats have a simple strategy to make the Supreme Court vacancy painful for the GOP

Senate Republicans appear to have the political resolve to force through President Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick, ultra-conservative circuit judge Amy Coney Barrett, in the days right before the election.

But that does not mean Democrats can't make them pay a heavy price for it, wrote Abigail Tracy for Vanity Fair.

"Democrats are focused on winning the messaging fight," wrote Tracy. "Polling from CNN suggests they have a head start, with nearly six in 10 Americans indicating that they think the winner of November’s election should fill the open Supreme Court seat. In the days since Ginsburg passed, Democrats have zeroed in on a Supreme Court case over the Affordable Care Act, slated for mid-November, to make their argument."

Barrett's past writings make clear she believes at least certain portions of the ACA should have been struck down in 2012, which raises the possibility she could be the deciding vote in favor of a state lawsuit seeking to invalidate the law entirely — set to be heard just a week after the election, by which point Republicans hope to have her seated.

Republicans' past attempts to rewrite or repeal the ACA have been met with furious resistance from voters, and played a key role in Democrats gaining a majority in the House in 2018. The prospect of a judicial decree canceling or altering coverage for tens of millions of people, which would set up a fight between Congress and the judiciary next year if Democrats gain full control, could become a key liability for Republicans in races this year.