Should Republicans gain a majority in the Senate in 2024, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., asserted that he would block a Supreme Court nominee from President Joe Biden.
“I don’t think either party if it controlled, if it were different from the president, would confirm a Supreme Court nominee in the middle of an election,” McConnell, the most prominent Republican in Congress, told Hugh Hewitt in an interview with the conservative talk radio host.
The comments come after McConnell in 2016 rejected a vote on the nomination of former President Barack Obama's nominee Merrick Garland, who was picked to fill a seat after the death of Associate Justice Antonin Scalia.
Political experts believe an open seat on the Supreme Court during a presidential election might sway an election.
The way to understand Mitch McConnell’s actions on blocking Garland in ‘16, to reversing that standard for Barrett in ‘20, to suggesting he’d block Biden in ‘23/‘24:
He is betting that Democrats won’t do anything to retaliate when they have power. So far that bet is paying off.
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur)
After blocking Garland, McConnell was accused of “hypocrisy” for voting on Amy Coney Barrett, a Supreme Court nominee in 2020, after the death of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. McConnell claimed that, “what was different in 2020 was we were of the same party as the president.”
McConnell's comments also come amid speculation that Justice Stephen Breyer, who is 82 years old, may step down from the high court while Biden is president. Breyer was appointed by former President Bill Clinton, a Democrat.
McConnell was asked if he would fill the position 18 months before the 2024 presidential election, he replied “we’d have to wait and see what happens.”
Democrats currently have a fragile 50-50 majority in the Senate, with Vice-President Kamala Harris serving as the tiebreaker. The 2022 midterm elections could give Republicans control of the chamber.
Democrats appear eager to balance the high court, which currently has six conservative judges and three liberal judges, as the court session comes to the end of its term. Appearing Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union," Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was asked if she supported Breyer retiring.
"It’s something I think about, but I would probably lean towards ‘yes’ … I’m inclined to say 'yes,'" Ocasio-Cortez said.
Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., posted on Twitter: "Mitch McConnell is already foreshadowing that he’ll steal a 3rd Supreme Court seat if he gets the chance. He’s done it before, and he’ll do it again. We need to expand the Supreme Court."
McConnell's comments drew condemnation on social media.
For the record:
Mitch McConnell @LeaderMcConnell is nothing but human blockage. https://t.co/AiScpuED2N— Brian J. Karem (@BrianKarem)
Let’s make sure Mitch McConnell is not the Majority Leader in 2022.
— Charles Booker (@Booker4KY)
By all means, Mitch McConnell, keep running your mouth about all the corrupt things you’ll do if you’re ever Majority Leader again. You’re just further motivating us to put in the election work required to make sure you never get that title back.
— Palmer Report (@PalmerReport)
Mitch McConnell continues to play with us. Not in a good way. Time for somebody to step up to that geezer.
— Mr. Newberger (@jeremynewberger)
