WASHINGTON — Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, said Tuesday that he supports holding a Senate confirmation vote for the Supreme Court nominee that President Donald Trump plans to announce this weekend.
“The Constitution gives the President the power to nominate and the Senate the authority to provide advice and consent on Supreme Court nominees. Accordingly, I intend to follow the Constitution and precedent in considering the President’s nominee. If the nominee reaches the Senate floor, I intend to vote based upon their qualifications,” Romney said in a statement.
Trump said Tuesday that he plans to announce his Supreme Court nominee on Saturday.
Trump had said he’s waiting to make the announcement until after services for the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died last week. On Friday, Ginsburg will lie in state at the U.S. Capitol, the first woman to do so, and a formal ceremony is expected to take place that morning.
Democrats oppose holding a Senate confirmation vote before the election, but have few avenues to block or slow the process. All eyes had been on Romney, a frequent Trump critic who voted to convict the president during the Senate impeachment trial earlier this year, as someone who could join Democrats to block the confirmation vote.
Romney’s announcement comes after Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado, one of the most vulnerable GOP senators facing re-election, said Monday that he will back a hearing for Trump’s nominee.
This means that Republicans likely have enough votes to hold a confirmation vote on the eventual nominee. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Susan Collins, R-Collins, who’s up for re-election in a tight race, said that they oppose holding a confirmation vote before the election.
Republicans can afford three defections in order to confirm the nominee, assuming all Democrats oppose the pick.
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said that he’s optimistic that the GOP-controlled Senate will ultimately confirm the nominee.
“I fully believe that we’ll have the votes that there will be there, and whether it’s before the election or shortly after, I’m confident that this person will get confirmed and be the next justice on the Supreme Court,” he said.
