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During an interview with his favorite morning show, Fox and Friends, Donald Trump claimed without evidence that Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dying words were fabricated. Ginsburg, who served on the Supreme Court for decades, passed away Friday. According to her family, her dying words were “My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.”
Ginsburg was likely referring to the treatment of Merrick Garland in 2016. Following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell insisted the Senate would not move to confirm a Supreme Court Justice during an election year.
As such, Garland was never confirmed, Obama’s term ended and Donald Trump won the election, nominating Neil Gorsuch to the seat.
The president, always eager to decry what he sees as “fake news,” alleged that RBG’s final words had nothing to do with the Supreme Court. “I don’t know that she said that, or was that written out by Adam Schiff, and [Chuck] Schumer and [Nancy] Pelosi,” Trump told the friendly faces on Fox and Friends.
“I would be more inclined to the second, okay? […] That sounds like a Schumer deal or maybe a Pelosi or shifty Schiff. So that came out of the wind. I mean, maybe she did and maybe she didn’t.” Fox hosts threw Trump further softballs, insisting that the Supreme Court could be tied in the event of a challenge of the official election results. As such, they continued, speed would be paramount in confirming a new justice.
Despite Mitch McConnell’s words in 2016, the 2020 GOP seems dead-set on confirming a Supreme Court justice to fill RBG’s seat before the end of Trump’s first term. During the interview, Trump noted “look, the bottom line is we won the election. We have an obligation to do what’s right and act as quickly as possible.”
Meanwhile, in 2016, Mitch McConnell insisted that the American people should have a say in who was on the Supreme Court. Ironically, Democrats have won the popular vote in six of the last seven elections, yet there are now only three Democratically-appointed Supreme Court Justices on the bench. This fact alone likely burns Democrats, who remain a nationally more popular party than Republicans.
While Trump’s chances at reelection are carried out in a vinyl zipper bag, Joe Biden is likely eager to be the president to nominate a Supreme Court Justice. However, should Trump rush to confirm a justice before January, Biden does have another option. He could add four more justices to the court, bringing the number to thirteen, and install four Democratic-leaning justices.
