Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (Ill.) on Wednesday evening called on Republicans to delay a vote on replacing Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy until after the fall elections, while acknowledging the fight will energize both parties’ bases.
“I think people will be energized. The polls indicate they are following this very closely and this announcement by Justice Kennedy will pique their interest even more,” Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, told Hill.TV correspondents Molly Hooper and Alison Spann.
Durbin echoed other party leaders in suggesting Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) follow the precedent he set in 2016 when he delayed a Supreme Court nomination vote until after the election. Merrick Garland, former President Obama’s nominee for the court, never got a vote. President Trump then got his own nominee, Neil Gorsuch, approved in 2017.
“It all depends on Sen. McConnell,” Durbin said. “If he is consistent, and uses his own rule, we’ll wait four months and have an election and let the American people decide what the majority in Congress will do in the next session,” he said.
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