Elected officials across Florida reacted on Wednesday as President Barack Obama nominated federal Judge Merrick Garland to fill the U.S. Supreme Court seat left vacant upon the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.
Republicans in the Senate have said they intend to prevent any nomination until the presidential election. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., took to the Senate floor after Obama nominated Garland at a White House event and noted the majority would not hold hearings on the nominee.
That drew fire from Democrats from the Sunshine State including U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla.
“The Senate has a constitutional responsibility to fill vacancies on the Supreme Court and I take that responsibility very seriously,” Nelson said. “Today, the president nominated Judge Merrick Garland to serve on our nation’s highest court and I hope that the Senate is given a chance to fully consider this nominee.”
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., kept a low profile on Wednesday though he has supported Republican efforts to delay the Supreme Court nomination until after the presidential election. Rubio bowed out of the presidential race on Tuesday night after losing the Florida primary to Donald Trump.
But if Rubio laid low, the Republicans running to replace him didn’t hesitate to express their opposition to the nomination on Wednesday.
"Let's be clear about what is at stake here: President Obama has spent seven years trampling on our Constitution - going after gun rights, states' rights, religious freedom and the privacy rights of each and every American,” Todd Wilcox, a businessman and Army veteran running in the primary, said on Wednesday. “Today's nomination sideshow is Obama's swan song attempt to destroy the basic rights on which this country was founded once and for all. Senators must fight this until the American people have an opportunity to put in place conservatives who, like Justice Scalia, understand the basic principles of liberty and freedom as enshrined in our Constitution by our Founders from this nation's very beginning."
“President Obama has done enough damage to this country and the Constitution, we must not let him do anymore,” said businessman Carlos Beruff who is also running in the primary. “The Senate cannot allow him to fill the seat of a conservative judicial giant like Antonin Scalia with a liberal Obama puppet. The president's nominee is especially dangerous because his record shows he wants to take away our Second Amendment rights.
“Republicans in the United States Senate must stand strong against President Obama’s liberal Supreme Court nominee,” Beruff added. “The American people elected a Republican Senate in direct response to the extreme agenda of this administration, and that Senate has a responsibility to do whatever it can to stop Obama from further damaging our country.”
Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera, who also is running for the Senate, also urged the Republican majority not to confirm the new nominee.
“I strongly oppose President Obama's decision to blatantly ignore precedent and the will of the American people by putting up a Supreme Court nominee during an election year,” Lopez-Cantera said. “This president has proven we cannot trust him to uphold the Constitution, and we cannot trust that a nominee he puts forward will rule in accordance with the Constitution. I encourage Sen. McConnell to continue to stay fast in his usage of the checks and balances of the United States Senate. As Florida's next United States senator I will always ensure justice nominees uphold our Constitution in the regard to what our Founding Fathers envisioned.”
But on the other side of the aisle, U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Fla., who is seeking his party’s nomination in the Senate race, echoed Nelson.
"Today, President Obama put forward a nominee to fill the vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court and it's time for Senate Republicans to do their job,” Murphy said on Wednesday morning. “The Republican obstructionists who have vowed to stop any nominee from even being considered are doing a disservice to the American people — and are betraying the democratic values laid out in our Constitution. Americans are tired of the gridlock in Washington, and in the U.S. Senate I'll always fight to cut through the dysfunction and get things done for our nation."
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
