Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia passed away nearly a year ago. His death was met with mourning and reflection on his career and impact on America. But almost immediately the conversation turned to his replacement. And rightly so.
President Obama nominated Judge Merrick Garland to replace Scalia, but Republican leaders refused to bring Garland’s nomination to the floor for debate or a vote arguing instead that the nomination of Scalia’s replacement should be the responsibility of the next president and not Obama. Democrats cried foul despite their confidence that Hillary Clinton would win the election.
Now that Trump has won and become the 45th President, his nominee will be facing a hostile crowd of Democratic senators.
BizPac Review noted that Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-NY, and other leading Democratic senators vowed to filibuster any Supreme Court nominee that Trump may put forth before the Senate.
Trump announced this week that he was nominating Judge Neil Gorsuch for the post. Gorsuch was on the original list of potential Supreme Court nominees that Trump announced during the campaign.
Despite the political calls for retaliation, one high-ranking Democrat is taking a stand and vowing not to filibuster Gorsuch’s confirmation.
“I’m not going to filibuster anybody,” Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., told The Weekly Standard. Manchin urged his colleagues in a statement released Tuesday “to put partisan politics aside and allow the vetting process to proceed.” He argued that the Republican’s treatment of Garland was “disgraceful” but that retaliation against them for those actions would be wrong.
SMART DEMOCRAT #Manchin Won't 'Filibuster Anybody' in SCOTUS Nomination https://t.co/d9NGRxnZ5a #Tucker #FoxNews #CNN #MSNBC #Hannity
— The Donald News (@TheDonaldNews) February 1, 2017
“That’s not what we were sent here to do,” Manchin said. “That’s not what I’m going to do. I’m anxious to sit down with the new nominee to find out more about him.”
“If you want the third branch of government to work, then you’ve got to have a nine-member Supreme Court,” he added. “So if Republicans did something and now Democrats are going to do something, two wrongs don’t make a right.”
My statement on the President's Supreme Court nominee, Judge Neil Gorsuch: pic.twitter.com/Ub6moBdpQw
— Senator Joe Manchin (@Sen_JoeManchin) February 1, 2017
Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin says Democrats shouldn't obstruct Trump's nominees: "Two wrongs don't make a right" https://t.co/GauiTq6Zh1
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) February 1, 2017
Source: BPR Review
