Connecticut’s US senators say the Senate set a precedent when it comes to considering Supreme Court Justice nominees during election years, and the Senate should stick to it.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D) said, “Mitch McConnell didn’t say he was doing it for political reasons. He said he was doing it to protect the American people, to give the American people the choice in 2016.”
Murphy is referring to the was treated by the Republican controlled Senate in 2016. Garland, a US District Court Judge in Washington DC, was President Barack Obama’s pick to succeed Antonin Scalia. Scalia died suddenly, leading to the vacancy.
Now, Democrats like Murphy and Blumenthal are arguing the situation is similar, if not identical. An election is four months away, and control of the US Senate is at stake. In 2016, McConnell rolled the dice by delaying action, on the hope that the Republican presidential nominee, at the time the primary season was in full swing, would defeat the Democrat, allowing for a conservative to be nominated to the bench. That risk paid off.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal says the biggest concern for him is the future of women’s health and the access to abortion services.
“This choice has real life impacts for women’s rights to decide when they become pregnant, their reproductive rights, women’s healthcare in all forms.”
Murphy says even though president will not be decided for more than two years, the Senate should wait on any confirmation.
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“That is not a rule that I would set but if you set it then you have to apply it to both Republican presidents and Democratic presidents.
