Democrats say Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham is not providing enough time for their members to vet President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, and want him to postpone the nomination.
Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats sent a letter to the South Carolina Republican Wednesday objecting to the committee’s timeline on a vote for Barrett, a federal appeals court judge in Indiana and law professor whom Trump nominated to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Democrats almost uniformly object to Barrett’s nomination, saying it would cement a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court.
“The timeline for consideration of Judge Barrett’s nomination is incompatible with the Senate’s constitutional role. We again urge you to delay consideration of this nomination until after the presidential inauguration,” Senate Democrats said in their letter.
Confirmation hearings are expected to start on Oct. 12 and last for four days. A committee vote is scheduled for Oct. 22.
“We’ll start on the 12th, we’ll have four days of hearings, and then, we’ll hold over the nomination for a week … and hopefully, we’ll come to the floor around the 26th,” Graham said during an interview with Fox News.
Spearheaded by the committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the letter stated Graham’s schedule leaves little time for the FBI to vet the nominee, the production and review of requested documents, and adequate time to review Barrett’s record. Democrats also contend there wouldn’t be adequate time to question the nominee.
Barrett met with numerous Republican senators this past week, but Democratic lawmakers refused to meet with Trump’s nominee to the high court.
“Why would I meet with a nominee of such an illegitimate process and one who is determined to get rid of the Affordable Care Act?” Schumer said of Barrett.
Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the committee, told the Washington Examiner that Democrats are likely to attempt various delay tactics during Barrett’s nomination process.
“They can do motions to adjourn. They can do two-hour objections to committees meeting more than two hours after they convene. All that stuff — but there’s nothing that will stop it. It will just get everybody stirred up and aggravated,” he said, citing recent comments by Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois.
“I agree with Sen. Durbin. There’s really nothing they can do to stop it,” Cornyn said, noting the tactics will not be enough to delay Barrett’s confirmation past the Nov. 3 election.
