Friday, April 15, 2016

Dems Would Be 'Justified' in Blocking Supreme Court Nominee of GOP President, White House Says

ABC News reports:
White House press secretary Josh Earnest raised eyebrows during today's press briefing by suggesting that Democrats would be “justified” to take revenge on the GOP blockade against Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland by blocking a possible GOP president’s nomination for the president's full term.

Earnest was recalling a suggestion President Obama made in an interview with Fox News Sunday in which he said if Republicans continued blocking Garland until he left office then “it is almost impossible to expect” that Democrats wouldn’t retaliate if given the opportunity.

"What's to stop Democrats who are in charge of the Senate when a Republican is in office, from saying, 'Well, we're just going to wait the four years to fill the vacancy.' There is no material difference in that argument. That would represent a breakdown of the process," Earnest said.
Josh Earnest is right, the Senate doesn't have to approve any Supreme Court nominee. There's doesn't have to be 9 justices on the court: Congress determines that.