McCain’s Stance on Hillary Clinton’s Appointees

McCain’s Stance on Hillary Clinton’s Appointees

Republican Senator John McCain recently made some fierce remarks regarding the appointment of a Supreme Court justice by Hillary Clinton to replace Judge Scalia. He has spoken of how he plans to stand against any nominee chosen by Hillary Clinton. “McCain made his remarks on WPHT-AM radio in Philadelphia, during an interview in support of fellow Sen. Patrick J. Toomey (R-Pa.). He stated, “I promise you that we will be united against any Supreme Court nominee that Hillary Clinton, if she were president, would put up (Washington Post).”

Results

The rhetoric that has resulted after release of these comments has been very critical from Democrats. It set the reality that a replacement for Judge Scalia could take much longer than they would have hoped for, particularly if Republicans remain in control of the Senate. This could cause the Supreme Court to remain unfilled possibly for the entirety of a democratic presidency if Republicans are in fact opposed to any nomination by the Democratic Party. To further this case, President Obama’s nomination of Judge Merrick Garland has had no progress in over six months due to Republican urges that the Supreme Court appointee should not be officially chosen until the new President is seated. The bigger issue caused by this dilemma is that the Supreme Court will remain unfilled and imbalanced until a judge is appointed, which may not be for quite some time if Democrat Hillary Clinton becomes president.

Political Gains or Political Peace

The question that surfaces from Senator McCains rhetoric is whether or not the Republican Party cares more about the political gains of their party, or the well-being of the Supreme Court. McCains words seem harsh to democrats and moderates alike, as it appears any judge nominated by a democrat will automatically be shunned, regardless of his or her success, knowledge, potential, or values. The candidate would automatically be deemed ineligible simply because they have been chosen by a democrat which to many, is unreasonable and unwise.

Revoking What Was Once Stated

Since the accusations of McCain being close-minded and partisan after his remarks, he has since revoked his claims that anyone nominated by Hillary Clinton would be considered unfit. “Senator McCain believes you can only judge people by their record, and Hillary Clinton has a clear record of supporting liberal judicial nominees,” spokeswoman Rachel Dean said. “That being said, Senator McCain will, of course, thoroughly examine the record of any Supreme Court nominee put before the Senate and vote for or against that individual based on their qualifications as he has done throughout his career (Washington Post).”

Why?

Perhaps the reason for him changing the rhetoric of his claims is that he seems too partisan. Although it is good to be loyal to his party, his judgements came across as harsh and party-oriented since it appeared he would not consider ANY of her appointees even if they were well-qualified. Chances are Senator McCain rebutted his original statements in order to seem more reasonable, bi-partisan, and thorough by attacking the opponent (Clinton) while simultaneously making himself seem more credible by boosting his ethos.