Senate chair reaffirms pledge to block an Obama nominee to the supreme court
Source: The Guardian
Senate chair reaffirms pledge to block an Obama nominee to the supreme court
Jamiles Lartey
Thursday 10 March 2016 19.46 GMT
The Senate judiciary committee chairman on Thursday reaffirmed his pledge not to consider an Obama nomination for the open seat on the supreme court, adding calls for a hearing were a charade and absurd.
In case there is any confusion over whether this obvious political ploy would work, let me be crystal clear: it wont, Chuck Grassley said during a committee business meeting. Were not going to drop any nominee into that election-year cauldron.
He is trying to protect this person from the hot boiling cauldron of this committee, responded Senator Dick Durban of Illinois, adding: Well, who is turning up the heat?
The vacancy created by the the death of Antonin Scalia has been the subject of fierce political debate that began just hours after the senior justice died unexpectedly in February. By successfully appointing a more liberal nominee to replace the stalwart conservative Scalia, Obama would likely shift the balance of the court that often comes to 5-4 rulings. Since 1925, it has been common practice for nominees to be vetted by the judiciary committee before receiving a hearing before the full Senate.
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http://www.theguardian.com/law/2016/mar/10/supreme-court-obama-nomination-senate-chuck-grassley