Democrats state that Trump’s Supreme Court pick should be delayed until after Russia investigation

Several Democrat politicians are supporting the idea that President Trump’s Supreme Court pick should be delayed for an indefinite amount of time, until the criminal investigation regarding his possible colluding with Russia is finished.

New Jersey Senator Cory Booker was the first one to bring this to notice, as he stated during a judiciary committee that Trump’s election process for a Supreme Court judge could directly intervene with the rollout of his criminal investigation. He stated that the ability to pick would shadow to fact that Trump’s previous actions are being put into question. He said:

If we’re not going to thoroughly discuss what it means to have a president with this ongoing investigation happening, who is now going to interview Supreme Court justices, and potentially continue with his tradition of doing litmus tests, loyalty tests, for that person, we could be participating in a process that could undermine that criminal investigation. I do not believe this committee should or can in good conscience consider a nominee put forward by this president until that investigation is concluded.”

Another senator who came forward to support this argument was Rhode Island’s Jack Reed, who found the Republican party’s ignoring of the ongoing investigation and possible intervention of Russia in American democracy too convenient and targeted to directly support the president. A group of state lawmakers and progressive groups have sent a joint statement calling for Republican Senator Chuck Grassley to delay the vote, framing it as possibly “another theft on behalf of [the] President”.

However, this approach has not been supported by all Democrats, as some find it nonstrategic. They have stated that the Democratic Party’s main priorities and objectives should be to keep the party’s position in unison and to win over some Republicans when it comes to voting. They would achieve the latter by framing Trump’s candidate as extreme and unfit for the Court.

Some Democrats who have previously supported Trump’s picks for the Supreme Court have defended Trump’s right to pick a candidate. For example, Democratic West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin has stated: “Senators have a responsibility to do our jobs as elected officials, and this includes our Constitutional obligation to advise and consent on a nominee to fill this Supreme Court vacancy.”

One of the President’s potential candidates, in particular, would increase the Senate’s concerns over Trump’s engagement with Russia. Brett Kavanaugh, who has a chance to be selected as candidate, is a judge who supports the idea of unchecked presidential power in executive matters – the “unitary executive theory”. If he were to be picked, the President’s ongoing investigation would be brought up during most of the voting process.

Many have stated that Republican senators are being hypocrites, as they refused to hold a voting or even a hearing on President Obama’s pick for a Supreme Court judge in early 2016. Republicans replied that they wanted to delay the vote until the presidential elections scheduled for later in the year, and were eager to weigh the majority in the Court in the conservatives’ favor after Trump’s win.

On the other hand, Republican allies of the president have stated that they are planning to have a candidate decided by the midterm elections scheduled for November. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who was primarily responsible for the previous situation with Obama, has not been hurt by the accusations, as he argues that this is not a presidential election year.

Featured Image via Flickr/jdlasica