Debate over Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg replacement intensifies
CHICAGO (WLS) -- As the tributes continue to pour in for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the debate over her replacement has intensified.
President Trump and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell have promised a nominee and vote on the floor as soon as possible- before the November 3 election.
Illinois Senator Dick Durbin and other Democrats have pointed out the hypocrisy in McConnell's position that has revered since 2016 when he refused to consider President Obama's pick to fill Justice Scalia's seat several months before the election.
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Durbin said, "Are the republicans so convinced that Donald Trump is going to lose they have to fill this vacancy now?"
Democrats have little power on this one and they need four Republicans to block a confirmation
"We can delay slow down do this and that, ultimately unless four Republican senators are people of principal or honest and people of integrity we are going to be faced with filling of this vacancy," Durbin said.
One of the names being mentioned on President Trump's short list is Amy Coney Barrett, a devout Catholic, graduate of Notre Dame Law School and Judge on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Barrett is known in legal circles as being very smart, intellectually honest and very conservative.
"She has upheld those conservative values to the extent possible while she's been on the 7th Circuit and when it comes to the Supreme Court, she can be less constrained," Jonathan Masur, University of Chicago Law School.
University of Chicago Law School professor Jonathan Masur said a majority conservative court will not just affect some of the big social issues like abortion, but many government regulations.
"A lot of the sitting Justices on the court have indicated they really want to carve back on the EPA's ability to make environmental rules," he said
If the Senate confirms President Trump's nominee before the election, it will be in record speed.
It will also be the third Supreme Court pick for Trump, which is extremely rare in a single presidential term
