"Fools rush in where angels fear to tread" is an old expression that sums up well he approach that should probably be taken with regards to the vacancy in the Supreme Court that needs to be filled. I think if his own vice-president believes something along these lines, as evidenced by this excerpt from a larger speech then Senator Joe Biden gave on the Senate Floor in 1992 urging George H.W. Bush (1989-1993) not to name a nominee to the Supreme Court until after the November election (the election Bush 41 would ultimately lose).
The president should postpone the nomination process until after the election.In fact, historically there's a lot of precedent for US presidents to postpone supreme court appointments during their last year. That is, until after the election. There is the genuine concern that the appointment will affect one way or the other the outcome of the election (one that is probably going to turn out to be close). If it is good enough for John Quincy Adams and Lyndon Johnson to wait, it should be good enough for the prevailing POTUS.
Section 2.2 of the Constitution gives the president the awesome responsibility to appoint members of the Supreme Court. It does not impose a time limit nor advocate for the process to be expedited. The appointment of a Supreme Court Justice is important for it will have ramifications long after Obama transfers power to the 45th president on January 20, 2017. It will have ramifications long after the 45th president transfers power to the 46th president, and so forth.
Here's a link to Joe Biden's 1992 speech:
© 2016 by Gary Hainsworth
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