Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, 2016/Supreme Court vacancy
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On March 16, 2016, President Barack Obama announced Merrick Garland as his nominee to fill the late Justice Antonin Scalia's seat on the United States Supreme Court.[2] At the time of his nomination, Garland was serving as chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He joined the court in 1997 after being nominated by former President Bill Clinton.[3]
In 2010, Garland was considered a front-runner for nomination to the Supreme Court of the United States following the retirement of Justice John Paul Stevens. Justice Elena Kagan was chosen instead.[4]
Justice Scalia died on February 13, 2016, at 79 years of age. A member of the U.S. Supreme Court for three decades, Scalia was considered "a champion of originalism" and the dominant conservative voice of the Court.[5][6]
His unexpected death created a vacancy in the Supreme Court. Several members of the U.S. Senate quickly made public comments on whether President Barack Obama (D) should nominate a replacement. U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) said, "The American people deserve to have a fully functioning Supreme Court. The Supreme Court of the United States is too important to our democracy for it to be understaffed for partisan reasons. It is only February. The president and the Senate should get to work without delay to nominate, consider and confirm the next justice to serve on the Supreme Court.”[6]
Some leading Republicans suggested that the individual elected to the presidency in November 2016 should have the right to make the nomination. U.S. Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a statement: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."[7] A spokesperson for U.S. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), Conn Carroll, tweeted, "What is less than zero? The chances of Obama successfully appointing a Supreme Court Justice to replace Scalia?"[8]
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) charged, "It would be unprecedented in recent history for the Supreme Court to go a year with a vacant seat. Failing to fill this vacancy would be a shameful abdication of one of the Senate's most essential Constitutional responsibilities."[9]
Read what Hillary Clinton and the 2016 Democratic Party Platform said about the Supreme Court vacancy below.
| CANDIDATE SUMMARY | |
Clinton on the Supreme Court vacancy
- In response to a question from moderator Chris Wallace during the third presidential debate on October 19, 2016, Hillary Clinton gave the following remarks on the U.S. Supreme Court: "You know, I think when we talk about the Supreme Court, it really raises the central issue in this election. Namely, what kind of country are we going to be? What kind of opportunities will we provide for our citizens? What kind of rights will Americans have? And I feel strongly that the Supreme Court needs to stand on the side of the American people. Not on the side of the powerful corporations and the wealthy. For me, that means that we need a Supreme Court that will stand up on behalf of women's rights, on behalf of the rights of the LGBT community, that will stand up and say no to Citizens United, a decision that has undermined the election system in our country because of the way it permits dark, unaccountable money to come into our electoral system. I have major disagreements with my opponent about these issues and others that will be before the Supreme Court. But I feel that at this point in our country's history, it is important that we not reverse marriage equality, that we not reverse Roe v. Wade, that we stand up against Citizens United, we stand up for the rights of people in the workplace, that we stand up and basically say, the Supreme Court should represent all of us. That's how I see the court. And the kind of people that I would be looking to nominate to the court would be in the great tradition of standing up to the powerful, standing up on behalf of our rights as Americans. And I look forward to having that opportunity. I would hope that the Senate would do its job and confirm the nominee that President Obama has sent to them. That's the way the constitution fundamentally should operate. The President nominates and the Senate advises and consents or not. But they go forward with the process."[10]
- During a radio interview on September 15, 2016, Clinton indicated that she would not request that President Barack Obama withdraw his nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court if she were elected president in November. "I’m going to let this president serve out his term with distinction and make the decisions that he thinks are right," she said. Clinton added, “If I have the opportunity to make any Supreme Court appointments I’m going to look broadly and widely for people who represent the diversity of our country, who bring some common-sense, real-world experience."[11]
- During her speech on March 28, 2016, at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, Clinton called on U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to “step up and do his job” by giving Merrick Garland a hearing. "He says we should wait for a new president because – and I quote – 'The American people shouldn't be denied a voice.’ Well, as one of the more than 65 million Americans who voted to re-elect Barack Obama, I'd say my voice is being ignored right now because of their obstructionism,” Clinton said.[12]
- During a speech in Harlem on February 16, 2016, Hillary Clinton criticized Republicans who wanted to postpone confirming a replacement for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia until after the 2016 presidential election. She said that the spirit that was influencing that movement was the same one that fueled efforts to restrict voting, calling both efforts “a blast from the Jim Crow past.” She said that Republicans speak "as if somehow he’s not the real President. That’s in keeping with what we’ve heard all along right? … Many Republicans talk in coded racial language ... they demonize President Obama.”[13]
- Discussing the characteristics of potential Supreme Court nominees on February 15, 2016, during a campaign stop in Nevada, Clinton said, “I think the President's going to look for somebody who has a record that is gonna be hard for the Republicans to be against. Somebody who is a sensible person with a good record and maybe somebody who's already been confirmed by the Senate." She continued, "We've got some judges on the courts of appeals, they were confirmed 99 to nothing. So there [sic] people who have already gone through the process."[14]
- On February 13, 2016, Clinton extended her condolences to Antonin Scalia's family and criticized Republicans who called for a delay in filling Scalia's seat. "My thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Justice Scalia as they mourn his sudden passing. I did not hold Justice Scalia’s views, but he was a dedicated public servant who brought energy and passion to the bench. The Republicans in the Senate and on the campaign trail who are calling for Justice Scalia’s seat to remain vacant dishonor our Constitution. The Senate has a constitutional responsibility here that it cannot abdicate for partisan political reasons," she said in a statement.[15]
- Read what other presidential candidates said about the Supreme Court vacancy.
| The 2016 Democratic Party Platform on the judiciary | ||||||
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Recent news
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See also
Footnotes
- ↑ CNN, "Hillary Clinton launches second presidential bid," April 12, 2015
- ↑ NPR, "President Obama To Announce Merrick Garland As Supreme Court Nominee," accessed March 16, 2016
- ↑ United States Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit, "Merrick B. Garland," accessed August 22, 2013
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Profiles of three possible successors to Justice John Paul Stevens," April 10, 2010
- ↑ The New York Times, "Justice Antonin Scalia, Who Led a Conservative Renaissance on the Supreme Court, Is Dead at 79," February 13, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Hill, "Justice Antonin Scalia dead," February 13, 2016
- ↑ CNBC, "U.S. Senate leader McConnell says wait on replacing Scalia," February 13, 2016
- ↑ The Huffington Post, "Conservatives Quickly Refuse Any Obama Court Replacement After Antonin Scalia's Death," February 13, 2016
- ↑ Talking Points Memo, "Harry Reid To Republicans: You Better Not Block Us From Replacing Scalia," February 13, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Full transcript: Third 2016 presidential debate," October 20, 2016
- ↑ U.S. News & World Report, "Clinton Refuses to Commit to Merrick Garland as Her Supreme Court Pick," September 15, 2016
- ↑ CNN, "Clinton takes aim at Trump in Supreme Court speech," March 28, 2016
- ↑ New York Daily News, "Hillary Clinton, during speech in NYC, compares GOP to ‘Jim Crow’ for refusing to back Obama’s Supreme Court pick," February 17, 2016
- ↑ CNN, "Clinton tips her hand on Supreme Court nominations," February 15, 2016
- ↑ Hillary Clinton for President, "Hillary Clinton Statement on the Passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia," February 13, 2016
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Democratic Party, "The 2016 Democratic Party Platform," accessed August 25, 2016
