Republicans are accusing President Barack Obama of hypocrisy for criticizing their intransigence on an Antonin Scalia replacement since, as a senator in 2006, Obama himself sought to block a confirmation vote for Justice Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court. Now, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest says the president "regrets" that approach.
Though he says Obama and the 23 other Democratic senators who tried to block Alito "shouldn't have looked for a way to just throw sand in the gears of the process," Earnest was quick to draw a contrast between 2006 and the current fight over Scalia's successor. The White House spokesman opined that, as opposed to the political nature of the Republicans' opposition, Obama's decision to filibuster was "based on substance," according to The Hill.
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