“…and he shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint … judges of the Supreme Court…” – Article two, section two, clause two of the United States Constitution.
Not only does the president constitutionally have the power to nominate judges, even in an election year, he has the political precedent to do so.
In the weeks leading up to the election, Joe Biden and Democrats said that Donald Trump needed to wait for the election before nominating a judge.
“The American people have a right to have a say in who the Supreme Court nominee is,” Biden said. “And that say occurs when they vote … for the President of the United States.”
However, in 2016, Biden was singing a different tune. When then President Barack Obama nominated Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court, Biden urged Senate Republicans to vote to confirm the nomination, even though it was an election year. “Give Merrick Garland a vote … You don’t have to support Merrick Garland, you don’t have to support the chief judge of the Circuit, vote no! But give him a vote.”
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, when asked about the Merrick Garland confirmation, said, “The president is elected for four years, not three years. The power he has in year three continues into year four.”
However, the political precedent to fill the seat during an election year goes back far before Obama; even George Washington made a nomination during an election year.
Kamala Harris said in the vice presidential debate that Abraham Lincoln did not make a nomination during an election year. However, the only reason he didn’t was that the Senate was on recess until after the election, and not because it was an election year.
Therefore, despite the fact that the AP has called the election for Biden, Trump was still following the precedent of Obama, who was nominating a judge in an election year when he couldn’t win reelection, in addition to precedent set by many other presidents, like Lincoln, who could have lost reelection.
The people should have a say in who the nominee is, and they do have that say by voting for the president and their senators. Voters put Trump into the White House in 2016, knowing that he has the power to nominate justices for all four years, as would any other president. They flipped the senate red in 2018, giving Trump a better chance at a successful nomination in his last two years in office.
In addition to the constitutionality of the move, Trump’s nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, will be a great addition to the Supreme Court. She will be a voice on the court to uphold the Constitution, protect gun rights, freedom of speech, and protect the right to life for the unborn. This nomination will cement a conservative majority in the court, which would be fundamental to protect America from a Biden-Harris administration, who are not keen on following the Constitution.
According to Biden’s campaign website, their administration would “ban the manufacture and sale of assault weapons” and “reduce stockpiling of weapons.”
Kamala Harris said in an interview that President Trump’s Twitter account should be suspended. “There is enough evidence to suggest that he is irresponsible with his words… The privilege of using those words in that way should probably be taken from him.” Free speech, and owning guns are not privileges, they are rights, but Biden and Harris don’t seem to think so.
Since the House of Representatives will remain controlled by the Democrats, and Republicans may not be able to gain a majority in the senate, cementing the conservative majority on the Supreme Court with Amy Coney Barret will keep Joe Biden in check throughout his term as president.
Having a conservative justice will ensure that despite their opinions, our Constitution will be followed, and our rights protected.
Photo courtesy of Fred Schilling/Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States/supremecourt.gov
