Ron Johnson said on Tuesday that the Senate would likely confirm President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee to replace Antonin Scalia – if the president nominated “a Justice Scalia clone”. He called on the staunch Republican opposition in the Senate to rise above “venom and rancor” and give the nominee a vote.
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“Given that we are in the midst of the presidential election process, we believe that the American people should seize the opportunity to weigh in on whom they trust to nominate the next person for a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court”, McConnell and Grassley wrote.
“I think I have a responsibility to perform, and I can’t worry about the election”, he said.
They pointed to past remarks made by Democratic senators to justify their wish to deny President Obama’s nominee a hearing. The Kentucky senator joined several Republicans up for re-election in declaring that Obama should let voters in November weigh in on the direction of the court through their vote for president. What precedent can the GOP point to for refusing to even consider a president’s Supreme Court nominee while he still has nearly a full year left in office?
Justice Antonin Scalia’s unexpected death, and Senate Republicans’ refusal to confirm a successor while President Obama is in office, threatens to ignite a battle over the court’s future.
Republican Sens. Rob Portman of Ohio, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and New Hampshire’s Kelly Ayotte – vulnerable incumbents – echoed McConnell, stressing the decision rests with the next president, especially since whoever is chosen could decide the tilt of the court for generations.
“The Constitution is pretty clear about what is supposed to happen now”, Obama, a former constitutional law professor, told a news conference at the close of a two-day meeting with leaders from Southeast Asia.
“I’m going to present somebody who indisputably is qualified for the seat, and any fair-minded person, even somebody who disagrees with my politics, would say would serve with honor and integrity on the court”, he added.
He would not comment on whether he would consider appointing a candidate during a congressional recess, a last-ditch maneuver that would inflame partisanship in Congress.
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The mass for the associate justice, who died last weekend, will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Saturday at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. President Ronald Reagan nominated him in 1986.
