U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse is backing Merrick Garland, President Barack Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court. That includes Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, who is set to have breakfast with Garland next Tuesday, but only to explain why he will not consider his nomination.
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President Obama tapped Garland to take the seat left vacant following Justice Antonin Scalia’s death.
“If you start getting into a situation in which the process of appointing judges is so broken, so partisan, that an eminently qualified jurist can’t even get a hearing, then we are going to see the kinds of sharp partisan polarization that have come to characterize our electoral politics, seeping entirely into the judicial system”, Obama said.
“At no point did I say: ‘Oh, I need a black lesbian from Skokie in that slot… can you find me one?’ That’s just not how I’ve approached it”, Obama said, noting he had transformed the federal court with diverse picks.
The president was being joined by a former law school colleague, professor David Strauss, for a conversation with students, faculty and judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, which has jurisdiction over legal matters from IL, and other local judges. Obama discussed his nominee to the Supreme Court, Judge Merrick Garland, and continued to call on the Senate to give him a fair hearing and and up or down vote.
“The most vulnerable Republicans are those who are up for reelection, and many of them are returning home now to a steady chorus of questions – not just from Democrats, but from independents as well – as to why they are refusing to do their job”, said Sen.
Grassley said on the Senate floor yesterday that he only wants to confirm justices who “vote in a way that advances conservative policy”.
Not only did the American people already use their voice when they elected Barack Obama – twice – as president of the United States, they are also using their voices now, as public opinion increasingly reflects a desire for the Senate to move forward on considering the president’s nominee. Obama chose him deliberately: The president digs his values, personal history, and jurisprudence, but also wanted a candidate who is well respected on both sides of the aisle in the hopes that he’d be hard for Republicans to ignore.
Obama previously nominated Supreme Court Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor. President Obama said he wished he could have designed “a more elegant” healthcare reform than Obamacare.
Democrats and Republicans are engaged in what’s expected to be a almost yearlong tug of war that includes TV ads targeting senators, partisans raising money off the conflict and opposition researchers digging for information.
Fourteen GOP Senators have expressed interest in meeting with Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland, according to the White House. Kirk said in the tweet that he met with Garland because his responsibility to Illinoisans is more important than partisanship. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), the minority whip, after meeting with Garland on Wednesday. “Take it from me, you really are able to make an incredible difference in the lives of people, day in and day out”. Lindsey Graham’s office said Thursday that he was willing to meet with the nominee.
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Obama said such paralysis in the judiciary would be a “disaster” for two reasons.
