MCCRACKEN COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18)– Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says if a Supreme Court vacancy occurs during next year’s presidential election, he would work to confirm a nominee appointed by President Donald Trump.
The Republican from Kentucky responded when asked the hypothetical question Tuesday during a Chamber of Commerce luncheon in Paducah.
Q: “Should a Supreme Court justice die next year, what will your position be on filling that spot?”
A: “Oh, we’d fill it.”
His response is in sharp contrast to his decision to block President Barack Obama’s nominee to the high court following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February 2016.
At the time, McConnell said filling a seat on the Supreme Court should wait until after the presidential election, so the newly elected president could select a nominee.
