WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Obama’s announcement Wednesday that he intended to nominate Merrick Garland to the U.S. Supreme Court to fill the seat of the late Antonin Scalia drew mixed reactions from West Virginia’s Congressional delegation.
Garland is currently the Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Obama made the announcement in a Rose Garden ceremony at the White House.
“No one is better suited to immediately serve on the Supreme Court. Throughout his career, Chief Judge Garland has shown a rare ability to bring people together and has earned the respect of everyone he has worked with,” stated a White House release.
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin said he wanted to evaluate Garland’s credentials before making a decision.
“I’m going to evaluate that nominate that nominee based on their legal qualifications and judicial philosophy,” Manchin said. “I don’t believe that the president could count on all Democrats (in the Senate), just because he’s a Democrat to follow the line.”
U.S. Sen Shelley Moore Capito, who had previously been forthright in her conviction that the next president-elect should choose Scalia’s replacement, did not alter her position Wednesday.
“Before a Supreme Court justice is confirmed to a lifetime position on the bench, West Virginians and the American people should have the ability to weigh in at the ballot box this November,” said Capito in part of a statement. “My position does not change with the naming of a nominee today.”
Third District Congressman Evan Jenkins also thought Garland’s appointment should be rejected given his track record of supporting the EPA.
“My initial review of the judicial record of President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, raises serious questions about his positions on issues important to West Virginia and the people I represent. As a D.C. Circuit Court judge, Garland has supported the Environmental Protection Agency and its overreaching, job-killing agenda,” Jenkins said. “His record suggests he will be an ally in this administration’s war on coal. I urge our U.S. senators to reject President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee.”
First District Congressman David McKinley echoed Capito’s sentiment that the next president, not Obama, should be who appoints a replacement.
“The American people deserve a say in the future of the Supreme Court. In the coming years the Court will be considering important issues that will shape the future of this country – from environmental regulations on coal to the Second Amendment. America has a chance to decide the future of the court in November, and we should let the people’s voices be heard,” McKinley said.
Manchin said he wanted to lot at a number of criteria before he made up his mind.
“Basically see how they’ve been a jurist, what type of a jurist they’ve been, what type of decisions they make, what type of social media they’ve been on and talked about; I want to look at all of that.”
Garland has served on the D.C. Circuit for 19 years.