“My liberal friends have been very accustomed to the idea of having a liberal court for many decades, but it is not written in the stars,” Utah told reporters after the decision. He called it “appropriate for a nation that should have … a court-of-court-right that reflects the center’s right-wing view.”
Judging by Trump’s remarks earlier this year and the vote to remove him from office, questions have been raised about where he will land on Rome’s Supreme Court nominee. And while Romney’s position does not mean that Trump’s yet-to-be-named candidate will definitely confirm the votes, it does mean that McConnell and Trump can move forward without delay.
Trump tweeted Tuesday that he plans to announce his candidacy on Saturday; Amy Connie Barrett and Barbara Lagoa are seen as top contenders.
G.O.P. Leaders are still preparing to try to fill the vacancy before the election or wait until the lame duck session, but the prevailing vote in the party is to move forward as quickly as possible.
“People are very supportive of the idea of moving forward. In terms of timing, it’s still in the air, “said Senate Majority Whip John Thun (RSD). “Speaking for me personally? Yes. I think it would be a good idea for us to move on [before the election.] But obviously we have a lot of different members whose positions can be different. “
Although Trump and some allies in the Senate are pushing for pre-election confirmation, leaders are reluctant to set a date. Thune said it’s McConnell’s decision. And Romney said he had no choice in the matter of timing, but had no quorum about taking confirmation before or after the election.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsay Graham (RSC) predicted on Tuesday that Trump’s nominee would be confirmed before the election, and when asked about the length of the confirmation hearing, he said “we will process the same as before.” It will quickly confirm lightning through Senate standards and exceptionally approach elections.
Other potential swing votes, such as Republican Sense. Colorado Corey Gardner of Colorado and Chuck Grassley of Iowa said Monday evening that they are not considering a nomination this year. Just sense. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) have said the seat should not be filled near this election, and Romney is now less likely to vacate the seat this year without taking that vote. .
Romney said he was following legislation that would allow President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland to be considered a candidate during the 2011 Trump election, rather than taking office based on his recent blockade. Since the opposition party took control of the Senate in 2016, Romney said the Democrats’ argument that the move was unfair did not weigh on his decision to replace Ginsberg.
Because the president’s party controls the Senate this time around, Romney said that given Trump’s nomination in 2020, the G.O.P. So it is reasonable to move on.
“It was not unfair because it was consistent with history. “It was consistent with the example, it was consistent with the constitution,” Romney told reporters. “That Merrick Garland’s decision was unfair, and so it should be made by doing something that doesn’t even mean much – which tells President Trump you can’t even get your nominee – he just doesn’t. ‘Don’t follow.”
Democrats took a different vote. For the second day in a row, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (DNY) went on the floor to provoke McConnell and his members. He read Republican quotes from 2016 defending the Garland blockade, throwing it back into the face of the GOP four years later.
“In this way, they justified President Obama’s unprecedented blockade of the Supreme Court nominee. No vote during the presidential year because we have to let the people decide, ”Schumer said. “Now: ‘Oops, that doesn’t make sense.’
Marianne Levine contributed to this report.
