On February 12, 2016, Justice Antonin Scalia died of a heart attack at a remote luxury resort in West Texas. The Republican Senate leader, Mitch McConnell, wasted no time declaring that his party would not allow President Obama to fill the Supreme Court vacancy.
There were still more than 340 days left in Obama’s term, plenty of time for confirmation hearings, but the Republican senators wouldn’t even talk to Obama’s nominee, the thoroughly worthy and decent Merrick Garland. Democrats loudly protested, portraying McConnell as “the obstructionist in chief.” (McConnell “happily embraced his image as the dark lord of the
There were still more than 340 days left in Obama’s term, plenty of time for confirmation hearings, but the Republican senators wouldn’t even talk to Obama’s nominee, the thoroughly worthy and decent Merrick Garland. Democrats loudly protested, portraying McConnell as “the obstructionist in chief.” (McConnell “happily embraced his image as the dark lord of the