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Senate Republicans promised to approve Trump’s nomination to the Supreme Court, contrary to what they said in 2016.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a liberal as a judge on the United States Supreme Court since 1993, died on September 18 at the age of 87 due to complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, during the United States presidential elections. Less than two months left. Her departure leaves a vacant seat on the Supreme Court, which now includes five justices nominated by the Republican president and three nominated by the Democratic president.
This is seen as an opportunity for President Donald Trump and the Republicans to increase the majority of the Conservatives to 6 people in a court that has power to decide many issues in the US, such as abortion, health, the law. firearms, electoral rules, presidential authority or the death penalty.
Judge Ginsburg in the United States capital, Washington, in November 2018. Image: Reuters.
The Supreme Court of the United States has 9 judges appointed for life, which means that they are only replaced upon death or active retirement. Three days after Ginsburg’s death, Trump said he planned to nominate a new judge to replace her on Sept. 26 and expressed his wish that the Senate vote for approval before the presidential election. despite Ginsburg’s desire to postpone his replacement until after the election.
By law, the US President has the right to nominate a new candidate to replace the vacant Supreme Court Justice seat for consideration by the Senate Judiciary Committee within 60 days, after which the US Senate. The US will vote for approval in principle. most. Most likely, Trump’s candidate will be elected, given the Republicans who control the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell immediately stated that the United States Senate would hold a vote on Trump’s nomination.
However, this is in stark contrast to what McConnell himself did in February 2016, when the Republican-controlled Senate refused to hold a hearing or vote on candidate Merrick Garland, who was former President Barack Obama is appointed. new Supreme Court Justice to replace Justice Antonin Scalia, recently deceased.
Justice Scalia, who has served firmly on the Supreme Court since 1986 thanks to the nomination of President Ronald Reagan, passed away on February 13, 2016. Just hours after Scalia’s death, McConnell firmly and clearly stated that he would refuse. to consider Obama’s new nomination of judge, with more than 11 months to go before the US presidential elections.
“Americans must have a voice in choosing their next Supreme Court justice. Therefore, vacant seats should not be filled until we have a new president,” McConnell said. Other key members of the Republican party agreed with him.
One reason they routinely cite Obama’s attempt to block the nomination is the “Biden rule.” The rule was introduced in a 1992 Senate speech by Senator Joe Biden, who is now a Democratic presidential candidate, that “once the election season is underway, the nomination for judge Supreme Court rulings should be deferred until after the campaign “.
McConnell was determined not to back down, although Democrats expected him to compromise under political pressure. On February 23, 2016, a week after Scalia’s death and before Obama announced the nomination of a new judge, McConnell announced before the United States Senate that the presidential candidate would not be voted on for approval.
“All presidents have the right to nominate, and the Senate has the right to approve or refuse to vote according to the constitution. In this case, the Senate will deny it,” said the Republican leader in the United States Senate. Okay.
Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee that day also signed a letter to McConnell, saying they would refuse to hold hearings against anyone nominated to replace Scalia. until the new president takes office on January 20, 2017.
Despite Republican toughness, Obama nominated Merrick Garland, then president of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, as the new Supreme Court Justice on March 16, 2016. By Obama’s calculations, it is unlikely that the Senate turn its back on Garland, a veteran judge respected by bipartisans.
“I hope they’re fair. That’s it,” Obama said of Senate Republicans when he announced Garland’s nomination for the White House.
Former President Barack Obama (left) announced the nomination of Merrick Garland (right) as a Justice of the United States Supreme Court at the White House in March 2016. Image: Reuters.
However, contrary to Obama’s expectations, Republicans refused to budge, stating that his position would not change and Garland would not be approved.
“I thought Garland was a good man, but nominating him did not change the current situation in any way,” said Orrin Hatch, the then-senator from Utah.
For months, from summer to fall, Senate Republicans stand as if there are no vacant Supreme Court seats and no one has been nominated as a new judge. On July 20, 2016, Garland broke the 100-year record for the number of days to wait between nomination and confirmation, with 125 days. The activities of the Supreme Court are also significantly delayed, when they limit the acceptance of new cases because there are only 8 judges, so the result of the vote will be 4-4.
The refusal of the Republican-controlled Senate to approve Obama’s nomination made the Supreme Court a key political issue in the race for the White House between Donald Trump and former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
On May 19, 2016, Trump published a list of possible candidates in the Supreme Court, based on the calculations of conservative allies, to allay the fears of skeptical Republican voters. your “fair” score. The commitment to nominate judges in favor of the fight against abortion or the defense of the right to use guns has helped Trump win the hearts of conservative voters.
On January 31, 2017, less than two weeks after taking office, Trump nominated Neil Gorsuch, then a judge on the Federal Court of Appeals in Colorado, to a vacant seat on the Supreme Court. Garland lost this chair after nearly a year of long waiting.
The United States Senate, where Republicans still held a majority advantage after the 2016 election, approved the nomination of the head of the White House in less than three months, on April 7, 2017.
Many observers, critical of McConnell’s inconsistencies in this regard, have argued that the early acceptance by the Senate of Trump’s nomination is a political move that does not serve the interests of the judiciary. America. According to CNN commentator Tedd Barret, Republican leaders appear to be calculating that full support for Trump’s nomination on the Supreme Court will significantly increase his chances of winning a Senate majority during midterm elections in November.
Even several Republican senators oppose this “slap” measure. Senator Lisa Murkowski, representative of the Alaska Republican Party, issued a statement on September 20 opposing the organization of the vote to approve the candidate to replace the late Judge Ginsburg.
“During the last weeks, I have stated that I will not support the replacement of judges when the next elections approach. In 2016, I did not support the approval of the late Justice Scalia’s replacement eight months before the election. Now, we are closer to the elections, less than two months to go, and I think the same standards should still be applied, “Ms Murkowski emphasized.
Aside from Murkowski, another Republican senator, Susan Collins, has also opposed hastily ratifying a new Supreme Court justice just before the presidential election. As long as two more senators support this position, Republicans will hardly hold a vote to approve the nomination of a new judge.
Gloss (According to the CNN, Reuters)
