In an every-expanding effort to block President Obama’s attempts to stack the Supreme Court with a liberal majority, Republicans have taken to extreme measures.
That includes the current “spring break,” during which Congress is supposed to be home for Holy Week and the week that follows. Instead, a small contingent of Republican senators has remained in Washington, D.C., to ensure the Senate remains in session to prevent Obama from making a “recess appointment.”
The Supreme Court has taken the opinion that any time Congress does not convene for more than three days, it constitutes a recess, during which the president may make appointments with Senate confirmation. Last week, Obama nominated D.C. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Merrick Garland to succeed Antonin Scalia on the high court.
Republicans have declared they have no intention of taking up Garland’s nomination, or any Supreme Court nomination, before the next president is sworn into office. With a number of key cases on the docket for the current sessions, Democrats are keen to get another liberal on the court before the November election.
Additionally, court observers expect the next president could appoint as many as four new jurists to the high court in his or her first four years in office.
