By Ebony Bowden, NY POST
WASHINGTON — With the presidential election looming, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Monday vowed to hold a vote on President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
“President Trump’s nominee for this vacancy will receive a vote on the floor of the Senate,” McConnell (R-Ky.) said in the chamber, warning of a cultural war over filling the influential role.
“We’re going to vote on this nomination on this floor,” he vowed as pressure mounts over the vacancy which could reshape the future of the highest legal body in the nation for decades.
McConnell, 78, said there was “overwhelming precedent” for the Senate to act quickly on a nomination.
“The Senate has more than sufficient time to process a nomination. History and process make that perfectly clear,” McConnell said, noting that Ginsburg’s nomination was filled in just 42 days.
The Kentucky lawmaker noted that there were 43 days until the presidential election and 104 days until the end of this Congress, rebuking claims from Democrats that a Supreme Court vacancy couldn’t be filled in such a short period of time.
Republicans led by McConnell mounted an 11-month blockade on a vote to confirm President Barack Obama’s nominee Merrick Garland in 2016 because it was an election year, saying the decision should be made by the American people.
But on Monday, McConnell insisted that this nomination was different to four years ago because Democrats then ruled the White House while the GOP was in the Senate.
Historically, no Supreme Court nominees have been confirmed in an election year when the government was divided, McConnell noted.
“President Obama was asking Senate Republicans for an unusual favor that has last been granted 130 years before then,” he said, noting that Democrats tried to block President George W. Bush’s nominee, Justice Samuel Alito, in 2006.
Demonstrators this week protested at McConnell’s house where they leveled charges of hypocrisy, while Democrats have vowed to expand the bench — a process known as “packing” the court — if Trump is given a third Supreme Court nominee.
Another Trump-nominated justice would give the court its first conservative majority for the first time since the 1960s, and would have far-reaching effects on issues such as gun rights, abortion and religious freedom for decades to come.
McConnell said a vote would be brought to the Senate floor “this year,” but did not give a specific timeframe. Trump said he would announce his nominee on Friday or Saturday.
The Senate leader warned of a bitter culture war similar to the contentious nominations of Justice Neil Gorsuch and Justice Brett Kavanugh, who was accused of historical sexual assault.
“Some of the same individuals who tried every conceivable dirty trick to obstruct Justice Gorsuch and Justice Kavanaugh are lining up to proclaim the third time will be the charm,” the GOP lawmaker said.
“The American people are about to witness an astonishing parade or misreptations about the past, misstatements about the present and more threats against our institutions from the same people who have already been saying for many months, well before this, they want to pack the court,” he added.
“Two years ago, a radical movement tried to use unproven accusations to ruin a man’s life because they could not let a vote, fair and square,” he continued, referring to Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings. “Now they appear to be readying for an even more appalling sequel.”
McConnell paid tribute to the Brooklyn-born Ginsburg who passed away at the age of 87 following a long battle with cancer, hailing her as a “historic champion for American women.”
“She opened one professional door after another, and made certain they stayed open behind her,” he said.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D. NY) took the Senate floor afterwards to blast McConnell for his remarks, which he said were “empty” and contained “not a shred of credibility” based on his past remarks.
“Despite their supposedly noble principle that the American people should have a voice in the decision of the next Supreme Court Justice, President Trump, Leader McConnell, Chairman [Lindsay] Graham (R. SC) have already announced they will ignore their own standard and will rush to confirm a new justice before the next president is installed,” Schumer said.
“A justice that could tear down Justice Ginsburg’s life works and other critical laws like the Affordable Care Act,” he added, accusing McConnell of “making a mockery” of his previous position in 2016.
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