Democrats want to take their ball and go home.
The Constitution sets out the process for filling a vacancy in the Supreme Court. The president nominates a replacement, the Senate provides “advice and consent,” and then lawmakers vote.
But Democrats, who are in the minority in America’s highest legislative chamber, don’t want to play the game anymore.
Supreme Court nominees usually meet with senators from both parties, but this time around, Democrats are refusing to sit down with President Trump’s nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) won’t meet with Barrett, saying on Sunday, “I believe first the whole process has been illegitimate. And second, because she’s already stated that she is for overturning the ACA [Affordable Care Act], I will not meet with her.”
Schumer, who says the GOP “will have stolen two Supreme Court seats” if Barrett is confirmed, is joined by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Maize Hirono (D-HI), in refusing to meet with the nominee. “I will oppose the confirmation of Judge Amy Coney Barrett, as I would any nominee proposed as part of this illegitimate sham process, barely one month before an election as Americans are already casting their votes,” Blumenthal wrote Sunday on Twitter.
Blumenthal echoed other Democrats’ talking points on Obamacare, saying, “If Judge Barrett’s views become law, hundreds of millions of Americans living w/pre-existing conditions would lose access to their health care. In the middle of a pandemic, rushing confirmation of an extreme jurist who will decimate health care is unconscionable.”
“I will refuse to treat this process as legitimate & will not meet with Judge Amy Coney Barrett,” he wrote.
I will refuse to treat this process as legitimate & will not meet with Judge Amy Coney Barrett.
— Richard Blumenthal (@SenBlumenthal) September 26, 2020
Barrett will meet with Republicans, including Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-SD), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), as well as Sens. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Rick Scott (R-FL), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Cory Gardner (R-CO).
“It’s going to be very hard to argue that Judge Barrett is not qualified for the Supreme Court. She respects the Constitution, law, and precedent. She is vigilant about making sure they are applied in an even-handed way – exactly the kind of justice you would want,” Thune wrote on Twitter.
It’s going to be very hard to argue that Judge Barrett is not qualified for the Supreme Court. She respects the Constitution, law, and precedent. She is vigilant about making sure they are applied in an even-handed way – exactly the kind of justice you would want pic.twitter.com/wRBTu8puV8
— Senator John Thune (@SenJohnThune) September 28, 2020
Republicans can afford to lose three votes in a full Senate vote because they have Vice President Mike Pence, who will also meet with Barrett, to break a tie. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), have said they oppose moving ahead with the confirmation before the election on Nov. 3. But Murkowski in recent days has softened her stance, saying she will meet with the nominee as she acknowledged “this process is moving forward with or without me.”
Related: Biden Delivers Stern Warning On Trump’s Supreme Court Pick