Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley said the Supreme Court vacancy is “being stolen” by the President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.
The Democratic senator urged MSNBC’s audience to pay close attention to the court’s vacancy on Thursday night.
“The seat that is sitting empty is being stolen. It’s being stolen from the Obama administration and the construct of our Constitution and it’s being delivered to an administration that has no right to fill it,” Merkley said. “And we have to understand that this is about the Koch brothers cartel working with the Republican majority to say that they basically want to pack the court.”
He added, “Need to do everything we possibly can to block it. We need to use our power.”
When pressed on his answer further, Merkley said he thought any nominee put forward by the president-elect in the next administration would be “illegitimate.”
Trump’s surprise victory in Tuesday’s election provoked a panic among progressive court-watchers that the Supreme Court would now lurch to the right.
Whether other Democrats adopt Merkley’s view of blocking a by-any-means necessary approach to blocking a potential Trump selection will determine whether Republican leadership may look to change Senate rules to allow for the Trump nominee’s confirmation by a simple majority.
