Political showdown erupts in Washington over the next Supreme Court nomination
- 8 years ago
WASHINGTON — The sudden death of 79-year-old Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia on Saturday has the chance to change the ideological balance of the Supreme Court for a generation. However, Senate Republicans have made it very clear they'll do anything to prevent that change from happening and won't approve of Scalia's replacement until next year.
Scalia's death on Saturday means that the Supreme Court now has the same number of Democrats and Republicans. President Obama, who nominated both Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, both Democrats, will want to appoint Scalia's replacement before his term ends in 2017.
Senate Republicans though, have already made it very clear they're not going to make it easy for Obama. Most of the Republican presidential candidates have also suggested that Obama should not move forward with an appointment.
Supreme Court justices are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Obama will first nominate a candidate, who then goes through an extensive financial and personal background check. The FBI probes their criminal history, if any. The Senate Judiciary Committee, made up of 18 senators, then interviews the nominee and asks questions about past casework and qualifications before they and the full Senate vote on the nominee.
However, according to Politico, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, has already said he will refuse to even begin the confirmation process.
Although a simple majority of 46 Senate Democrats and five Republicans is all that's needed to confirm an appointment, Republicans would likely filibuster to obstruct proceedings. A total of sixty votes are needed to overturn the filibuster.
The longest it has ever taken to confirm a Supreme Court nominee is 125 days. Obama has more than 300 days left in office.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Welcome to TomoNews, where we animate the most entertaining news on the internets. Come here for an animated look at viral headlines, US news, celebrity gossip, salacious scandals, dumb criminals and much more! Subscribe now for daily news animations that will knock your socks off.
Visit our official website for all the latest, uncensored videos: http://us.tomonews.net
Check out our Android app: http://bit.ly/1rddhCj
Check out our iOS app: http://bit.ly/1gO3z1f
Get top stories delivered to your inbox everyday: http://bit.ly/tomo-newsletter
Stay connected with us here:
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/TomoNewsUS
Twitter @tomonewsus http://www.twitter.com/TomoNewsUS
Google+ http://plus.google.com/+TomoNewsUS/
Instagram @tomonewsus http://instagram.com/tomonewsus
Scalia's death on Saturday means that the Supreme Court now has the same number of Democrats and Republicans. President Obama, who nominated both Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, both Democrats, will want to appoint Scalia's replacement before his term ends in 2017.
Senate Republicans though, have already made it very clear they're not going to make it easy for Obama. Most of the Republican presidential candidates have also suggested that Obama should not move forward with an appointment.
Supreme Court justices are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Obama will first nominate a candidate, who then goes through an extensive financial and personal background check. The FBI probes their criminal history, if any. The Senate Judiciary Committee, made up of 18 senators, then interviews the nominee and asks questions about past casework and qualifications before they and the full Senate vote on the nominee.
However, according to Politico, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, has already said he will refuse to even begin the confirmation process.
Although a simple majority of 46 Senate Democrats and five Republicans is all that's needed to confirm an appointment, Republicans would likely filibuster to obstruct proceedings. A total of sixty votes are needed to overturn the filibuster.
The longest it has ever taken to confirm a Supreme Court nominee is 125 days. Obama has more than 300 days left in office.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Welcome to TomoNews, where we animate the most entertaining news on the internets. Come here for an animated look at viral headlines, US news, celebrity gossip, salacious scandals, dumb criminals and much more! Subscribe now for daily news animations that will knock your socks off.
Visit our official website for all the latest, uncensored videos: http://us.tomonews.net
Check out our Android app: http://bit.ly/1rddhCj
Check out our iOS app: http://bit.ly/1gO3z1f
Get top stories delivered to your inbox everyday: http://bit.ly/tomo-newsletter
Stay connected with us here:
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/TomoNewsUS
Twitter @tomonewsus http://www.twitter.com/TomoNewsUS
Google+ http://plus.google.com/+TomoNewsUS/
Instagram @tomonewsus http://instagram.com/tomonewsus