Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) released a statement today following the news of the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
Trail Blazer Blog reported:
GOP presidential contenders are arguing for the Senate to run out the clock on President Barack Obama, depriving him the chance to fill the Supreme Court vacancy left by Justice Antonin Scalia’s death today.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell agrees.
“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,” McConnell said in a statement.
Nearly a quarter of Obama’s second term remains – just over 11 months.
But with news of Scalia’s death less than an hour old, Sens. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio have already asserted that the next president, not Obama, fill the job.
“We owe it to him, and the Nation, for the Senate to ensure that the next President names his replacement,” Cruz tweeted.
Said Rubio: “The next president must nominate a justice who will continue Justice Scalia’s unwavering belief in the founding principles that we hold dear.”
It wasn’t exactly clear if they were calling on Obama to refrain from naming a new justice, or on the Senate to block any nominee.
