Vice President Joe Biden on Monday was added to the tally of politicians (like President Obama) who have contradicted themselves on election-year nominations to fill Supreme Court vacancies. "Senate consideration of a nominee under these circumstances is not fair to the president, the nominee, or to the Senate itself," he said in the run-up to the 1992 election.
Biden finds himself in ample company. The Washington Post's Fact Checker blog counts "a bushel of flip-flops on approving judicial nominees" from both sides of the aisle. For example, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) argued in April 2008, "There is no reason for stopping the confirmation of judicial nominees in the second half of a year in which there is a presidential election." But this year, he discovered that there is a tradition, after all, and it's "not to confirm someone in the last year."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
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.
-
The mental health crisis affecting vetsUnder The Radar Death of Hampshire vet highlights mental health issues plaguing the industry
-
The Onion is having a very ironic laugh with InfowarsThe Explainer The satirical newspaper is purchasing the controversial website out of bankruptcy
-
'Rahmbo, back from Japan, will be looking for a job? Really?'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Ukraine fires ATACMS, Russia ups hybrid warSpeed Read Ukraine shot U.S.-provided long-range missiles and Russia threatened retaliation
-
New York DA floats 4-year Trump sentencing freezeSpeed Read President-elect Donald Trump's sentencing is on hold, and his lawyers are pushing to dismiss the case while he's in office
-
Wyoming judge strikes down abortion, pill bansSpeed Read The judge said the laws — one of which was a first-in-the-nation prohibition on the use of medication to end pregnancy — violated the state's constitution
-
US sanctions Israeli West Bank settler groupSpeed Read The Biden administration has imposed sanctions on Amana, Israel's largest settlement development organization
-
Gaetz ethics report in limbo as sex allegations emergeSpeed Read A lawyer representing two women alleges that Matt Gaetz paid them for sex, and one witnessed him having sex with minor
-
Biden allows Ukraine to hit deep in RussiaSpeed Read The U.S. gave Ukraine the green light to use ATACMS missiles supplied by Washington, a decision influenced by Russia's escalation of the war with North Korean troops
-
Sri Lanka's new Marxist leader wins huge majoritySpeed Read The left-leaning coalition of newly elected Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake won 159 of the legislature's 225 seats
-
Biden arrives in Peru for final summitsSpeed Read President Joe Biden will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, visit the Amazon rainforest and attend two major international summits
