Mark Kirk becomes first Republican senator to meet with Merrick Garland

Merrick Garland and Sen. Mark Kirk.
(Image credit: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images)

On Tuesday, Mark Kirk became the first Republican senator to meet with Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland.

The senator from Illinois called Garland a "brilliant" legal mind, and said he was "one of the most eminent jurists in the country." The Republicans who are blocking the nomination until after the presidential election and won't meet with Garland are "too closed-minded," Kirk said, and "by leading by example, I'm showing what a rational, responsible guy would do that really wants the constitutional process to go forward."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.