Race to name US court pick
Trump expects to reveal Ginsburg’s replacement by Saturday
President Donald Trump said he expects to announce his pick for the Supreme Court by week’s end before Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is buried, launching a monumental Senate confirmation fight ahead of the November polls.
Trump said on Monday that he is planning to name his pick by Friday or Saturday, ahead of the first presidential election debate.
Ginsberg’s casket is to be on view mid-week on the iconic steps outside the court and later at the Capitol. She will be buried next week at Arlington National Cemetery.
Democrats, led by presidential nominee Joe Biden, are protesting the Republicans’ rush to replace Ginsburg, saying voters should speak first on Election Day on Nov 3, and that the winner of the White
House should fill the vacancy.
Trump told Fox & Friends he had a list of five finalists, “probably four”. He said his choice would likely be a woman.
As for the swift action, he said, “I think that would be good for the Republican Party, and I think it would be good for everybody to get it over with.”
The impending clash over the vacant seat – when to fill it and with whom – has scrambled the stretch run of the presidential race for a nation already reeling from the pandemic that has killed nearly 200,000 people, left millions unemployed and heightened partisan tensions and anger.
Democrats point to the hypocrisy of Republicans in trying to rush through a pick so close to the election after refusing to do so for President Barack Obama in February 2016, long before that year’s election.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is pushing ahead with plans to begin the confirmation process, and the Senate
GOP leadership team was to meet on Monday on next steps.
Trump allowed that he would accept a vote in the lame duck period after Election Day, but made clear his preference would be that it occur by Nov 3.
Announcing a nominee on Friday or Saturday would leave less than 40 days for the Senate to hold a confirmation vote before the election.
No nominee has won confirmation that quickly since Sandra Day O’Connor became the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court in 1981.
Trump confirmed on Monday that among the top contenders are Indiana’s Amy Coney Barrett (pic) and Florida’s Barbara Lagoa, both appellate court judges he appointed.
Barrett has long been a favourite among conservatives, while Lagoa has been pushed by some aides who tout her political advantages of being Hispanic and hailing from the key battleground state of Florida.
Trump also indicated that Allison Jones Rushing, an appellate judge from North Carolina, is on his short list.