Bob Casey continues to take heat for his bizarre decision to announce his opposition to President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, even before it was announced that the eminently qualified Judge Brett Kavanaugh was the pick.
Editorial boards across the commonwealth are slamming his decision to obstruct at all costs. Some highlights:
Williamsport Sun-Gazette: Pre-emptive strikes to Kavanaugh nomination stain Casey, Senate
“The politicization of Supreme Court nominees is so bad that Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey announced his opposition before President Trump announced the nominee because the nominee was coming off a list of 25 people, several of whom he had previously voted for.
“Given the Democrats’ appetite for spontaneous resistance these days, that line of reasoning may make Casey an ideal vice presidential choice for California Sen. Kamala Harris, who is coming here to raise money for his Senate re-election campaign.”
Tribune-Review: Editorial: Don’t obstruct process, Sen. Casey
“Before Trump announced Kavanaugh as his nominee, Casey said he would oppose whomever the president picked because the choice would come from a short list of candidates developed with the help of conservative special interest groups.
“’I was elected to represent all Pennsylvanians. I was not elected to genuflect to the hard right, who are funded by corporate America,’ Casey said in a statement.
“Casey wasn’t elected to genuflect to the hard left or Democratic leaders in Washington, either.”
Reading Eagle: Editorial: Casey wrong to prejudge Kavanaugh
“It is unfortunate that U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr. decided so early to oppose President Donald Trump’s second nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court. Casey, a Democrat from Scranton, announced his intention to reject the president’s choice of Judge Brett Kavanaugh before he made it.
…
“But the Constitution gives the president the power to appoint justices, and the Senate the obligation to review and approve or reject the president’s nominees. Rejecting a nominee before performing that review is a dereliction of duty – a simultaneous embrace of partisanship and a rejection of the Constitution.”