Sen. McConnell Says Filibuster Of Supreme Court Nominee Sotomayor Remains Possible

Main Category: Abortion
Article Date: 16 Jun 2009 - 6:00 PDT

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Appearing on CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnel (R-Ky.) said that Senate Republicans have not ruled out a filibuster on the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor, The Hill reports. Although McConnell acknowledged that he has "consistently opposed filibustering judges," he added that the "precedent was established" when Democrats filibustered Miguel Estrada, an appeals court nominee under former President George W. Bush. When asked to clarify his statement, McConnell added, "The Democrats have firmly established that as a precedent, but that doesn't mean you are going to use it" (Blake, The Hill, 6/14). McConnell also said that it is "way too early to be talking about whether or not anybody opposes this nominee" (Schieffer, "Face the Nation," CBS, 6/14).

According to The Hill, McConnell is the first top GOP senator to state that a filibuster is a possibility, as most other Republicans have said only that it is too early to determine if it should be an option. Republicans "face a difficult path" if they choose to filibuster Sotomayor because party members have long decried judicial filibusters, The Hill reports (The Hill, 6/14).

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