Geoffrey R. Stone on the Implications of Delaying the Supreme Court Nomination

What the SCOTUS Nomination Delay Means for America

ATTN: Can you explain the logic behind the current delay of the Supreme Court nomination process?

Geoffery Stone: Right now, with Justice Scalia off the court, the court is divided in a way so that the next nominee, and the next justice confirmed, will have a very substantial impact on the direction of the court across a range of issues, and the stakes are therefore very high. For example, when Justice Elena Kagan or Justice Sonia Sotomayor were nominated, they were basically seen as liberals replacing liberals — and, therefore, the votes on the court on important issues weren't likely to change. But with a Merrick Garland or even a more liberal nominee by President [Hillary] Clinton replacing Justice Scalia, and given the current division in the court, that would lead to a significant shift of direction on issues that are of great consequence to many people.

That's what raises the stakes. That's what makes it so important. It has nothing to do with the fact that it's in the last year of the president's term. Republicans would be equally upset and anxious regardless of when this particular type of situation arose. What they've done is basically use the excuse, and it's only an excuse, that this has arisen in the last year of President Obama's term to try to justify what is basically a historically unprecedented and constitutionally unconscionable approach, which is to deny a confirmation to a patently and unequivocally qualified nominee simply because they don't like the impact of that confirmation on the court. And that's an extraordinary event.

Read more at ATTN: