Trump says GOP has 'obligation' to replace Ginsburg 'without delay'

Donald Trump.
(Image credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

That didn't take long.

President Trump on Saturday urged Senate Republicans to confirm a new Supreme Court Justice, who he will nominate, to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday night at 87. Trump told GOP lawmakers "we have this obligation, without delay."

Ginsburg's death has already sparked a debate over the vacant seat. In 2016, Senate Republicans blocked then-President Barack Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland, because it was an election year. So is 2020, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has argued it's a different situation because the Senate majority and president are from the same party and, therefore, he is aiming to fast-track a nomination. Democrats — and some Republicans — have said a confirmation hearing should wait until at least after the November election, if not January's inauguration.

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Days before she died, Ginsburg reportedly said her "most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed." With Trump and McConnell on the same page about confirming her replacement as soon as possible, it appears whether her wish is granted will depend on how individual Republican senators approach the situation.

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.