title:  PROOF Republicans Claiming Obama Shouldn’t Pick Supreme Court Justice Are Hypocrites (QUOTES)
text: It really seems as if Republicans don t think the things they say and do are recorded. It s as though they only live in the moment and history ceases to exist. Because if they realize the things they say and do are recorded they would know that we could throw what they ve said and done back in their faces, like with what is about to happen.You see, Republicans are hellbent in making sure President Obama doesn t nominate anyone to become the next Supreme Court Justice of the United States after the passing of Justice Antonin Scalia. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell even went so far as to say,  The American people  should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.  And don t forget Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley insisting we wait until next year to fill the vacant seat. He said: The fact of the matter is that it s been standard practice over the last nearly 80 years that Supreme Court nominees are not nominated and confirmed during a presidential election year. Given the huge divide in the country, and the fact that this president, above all others, has made no bones about his goal to use the courts to circumvent Congress and push through his own agenda, it only makes sense that we defer to the American people who will elect a new president to select the next Supreme Court justice. However, what both these Republicans fail to realize, alongside all the other conservatives and conservative pundits who share this opinion, is that it is the president s constitutional duty to nominate a new Justice so that order and balance is held within all three branches of government. It is also not their place to say that he can t. Truth is, they don t want him to, because they re terrified of who he might pick to replace the ultra-conservative Scalia.Here s the thing about history, though   it will come back to bite you when you least expect it, and prove that you may, in fact, be a huge hypocrite. Here are some quotes from back when former President George W. Bush was trying to get a vote on his nominees. And you may recognize a couple of the names: Because of the unprecedented obstruction of our Democratic colleagues, the Republican conference intends to restore the principle that, regardless of party, any President s judicial nominees, after full debate, deserve a simple up -or -down vote.    Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) (5/19/05) I hope that by the end of this session of Congress, my colleagues will give the President s qualified nominees what they, and all current and future nominees deserve: the opportunity to have a fair up-or-down vote on the floor of the Senate on their nomination. For the sake of the Senate, the nation, and our independent judiciary, I hope that these partisans will not launch more filibusters, but from what I ve heard today, I won t hold my breath.    Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) (3/26/04) The bottom line has to be that the president has the right to get a vote, an up-or-down vote, on his nominees.    Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) (11/10/04) Let s debate the nominees and give our advice and consent. It is a simple  yea  or  nay,  when called to the altar to vote. Filibustering a nominee into oblivion is misguided warfare and the wrong way for a minority party to leverage influence in the Senate. Threatening to grind legislative activity to a standstill if they do not get their way is like being a bully on the school yard playground. Let s do our jobs. Nothing is nuclear about asking the full Senate to take an up-or-down vote on judicial nominees. It is the way the Senate has operated for 214 years.    Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) (5/23/05) But denying these patriotic Americans, of both parties, who seek to serve this country an up-or-down vote is simply not fair, and it certainly was not the intention of our Founding Fathers when they designed and created this very institution.    Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) (4/20/05) Every nominee deserves a prompt up-or-down vote on the Senate floor.   Dick Cheney (5/10/04)And if this truly how all these men felt at the moment, then they should still feel that way now. They should abide by the constitution, allowing President Obama to make his picks, as well as give him an up-or-down vote on who he decides would be the best fit. Only reasonable, right? You know, since it s their idea.Featured image: Flickr