Although Toomey and most Senate Republicans have vowed they will not confirm President Obama’s nominee to fill the vacancy created by the death of Justice Anton Scalia, Toomey agreed last month to meet with Garland, “out of courtesy and respect for both the president and the judge”.
Advertisement
A day earlier, Obama and Vice President Joe Biden endorsed Kirk’s Democratic challenger for the Senate, Rep. Tammy Duckworth, signaling the President would actively campaign against the Republican incumbent as November’s election nears.
Their call came as Garland began a new round of private meetings with key Republican senators Tuesday – starting with a highly anticipated breakfast with the man who controls whether he will get a confirmation hearing, Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa).
The Democrats are far more interested in playing politics than upholding the will of the people.
“The only option is for the chairman of the committee to say, ‘We’re going to have a hearing, ‘ ” Leahy said with a mischievous smile.
On the ground in Grassley’s home state of Iowa, a clear rift is being exposed between those who are encouraging Grassley’s continued intransigence and the constituents who are calling for their senator to do his job.
Miller was joined on the call that was organized by Americans United For Change, which FactCheck.org describes as “a liberal group whose message closely mirrors that of the Obama White House”, by Drake University law professor Mark Kende and Des Moines attorney Keith Uhl.
“It was a very friendly meeting”, the veteran Republican told CNN in an exclusive interview after the meeting.
He complained that Garland, the chief judge on the U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia, had been the victim of a attacks by “ultra right-wing groups” spending millions of dollars against him.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who went to the dining room to greet Garland, escorted the judge past those same obstacles as she led him to her hideaway, which is just down the hall from Grassley’s, for a short meeting.
Moran’s seat will nearly certainly remain Republican. Susan Collins of ME, have expressed support for public hearings. “Throughout his entire presidency, the Senate confirmed 326 of President Bush’s judicial nominations”.
Grassley and Senate Republicans say the next president should fill a court vacancy. Senate Republican leaders are blocking his confirmation, saying the next president elected by voters should choose a nominee. While several Republicans have indicated they want the process to move forward, the vast majority of the conference backs Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s decision to wait until 2017, when a new president will be in the Oval Office.
Advertisement
Asked about the decision to endorse Duckworth a day before visiting Chicago, White House spokesman Eric Schultz told reporters Obama made his decision based exclusively on the two-term congresswoman’s qualifications. Obama followed that script by picking Garland, a highly regarded judge with liberal views but a moderate, collaborative image.
