Key GOP Senators Say There’s ‘No Crack’ in Vow of No Hearings, No Votes
Genevieve Wood /
The battle over whether to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court created by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia has escalated since President Barack Obama submitted U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Merrick Garland as his nominee. Though Senate Democrats continue to push for hearings and one GOP Senator, Mark Kirk of Illinois, met with Garland this week, Republican leaders have vowed to remain firm in their commitment to hold no hearings and no votes on a nominee until a new president takes office in 2017. Two longtime Judiciary Committee members, Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, explain why.