Senator Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina, suggested on Friday that the Republican-led senate will continue to confirm President Trump’s judicial nominees in 2021, right up until when the next president is sworn in on January 20, 2021.
“I think we got some district court judges that were Republican and Democrat. But, yeah, the committee will keep operating. I’ll get back with you about more details about how far to go,” Graham, the Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman, told reporters, after being asked about whether the Senate could possibly continue to confirm judges in December and January, even if Trump loses, according to The Hill.
“We’ll see what happens with the presidential race,” he continued. “If Trump comes back in Arizona, and he actually takes Arizona, this is going to be one hell of a fight,” Graham said.
“If at the end of the day he falls short in Arizona, I think most people trust Arizona to have done it right. Republicans trust Gov. Ducey [R-Arizona],” he said. “The trend seems to be that Trump actually could win Arizona.”
Graham’s comments came after McConnell vowed to confirm as many of Trump’s court picks, even if he doesn’t win the election.
“We’re going to run through the tape. We go through the end of the year, and so does the president. We’re going to fill the 7th Circuit, and I’m hoping we have time to fill the 1st Circuit as well,” McConnell told conservative talk radio host Hugh Hewitt last week.
“And we are, by the way, confirming a district judge as soon as we get back after the election, and we’re going to clean the plate, clean all the district judges off as well,” McConnell said.
There are currently two U.S. appellate court vacancies and 55 U.S. district court vacancies.
