Blumenthal blasts GOP refusal to hold hearing for Supreme Court nominee

Sen. Richard Blumenthal

Washington – Sen. Richard Blumenthal blasted GOP senators on Tuesday because they said they oppose holding a confirmation hearing for any Supreme Court nominee that President Obama selects.

“Senate Republicans’ refusal to do their job is a shameful abdication of constitutional responsibility,” Blumenthal said. “There is a long-standing bipartisan tradition of giving full and fair consideration to Supreme Court nominees – a tradition Republicans dishonor with their absolute obstruction.”

Obama is thought to be close to naming a replacement for the late Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court. The president spent the weekend considering a list of possible candidates.

However,  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn told reporters Tuesday afternoon that all Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee oppose holding a confirmation hearing.

They say it’s too late in Obama’s term, which ends at the start of next year, for him to chose a justice who would be likely to swing the balance on the Supreme Court.

But Blumenthal,  a Democratic member of the Judiciary Committee, said “rejection of President Obama’s ability to execute one of his constitutional duties – for nearly a quarter of his term – is unprecedented and unacceptable.”