DENVER | Colorado state Sen. Bill Cadman, the top-ranking legislative Republican, said Tuesday the U.S. Senate should not try to stop President Barack Obama from nominating a replacement for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
Not long after calling reporters in to make that statement, he walked it back after it caused a firestorm of political controversy that went national. He later wanted to clarify his remarks, saying that he didn’t intend for the statement to make it sound as if he were cautioning the U.S. Senate to block a nominee from getting a nomination hearing.
Meanwhile, state House Speaker Dickey Lee Hullinghorst, the top-ranking Democrat, agreed but said that’s her personal opinion and it would be a waste of time for state lawmakers to weigh in on the matter.
Senate president Cadman told reporters earlier that he disagrees with Republicans who have said Obama should allow the next president to nominate a jurist for the top court.
“Both sides have a job to do, so I think the political posturing right now is somewhat unfortunate,” Cadman said. “This is actually a time where the Republican Senate could have an influence on the Democratic presidential nominee, and let the process work.”
The Associated Press, Denver Post and Durango Herald all ran similar stories about Cadman’s comments after the morning announcement.
Cadman later offered these remarks on the Colorado Republican Party website:
“I want to clarify the meaning of remarks made earlier today, which may lead to misunderstandings if taken out of context. I wasn’t misquoted by the reporter but nothing I said should be interpreted as aligning me with Democrats, or against Republican colleagues, on the question of nominating and confirming a replacement for Justice Scalia. My comment that ‘both sides have a job to do’ simply meant that the Senate’s job of confirming a nominee, through its powers of advice and consent, is equal in importance to the President’s job of nominating someone. If a majority of Senators choose to reject a nominee, or delay confirmation until after President Obama leaves office, they are perfectly within their rights, in my opinion, and doing the ‘job’ the Constitution assigns them. I simply observed that the timing of this vacancy gives Republicans added leverage in possibly shaping and influencing the legal leanings of any potential nominee.”
Hullinghorst, the House speaker, shook her head when asked if she’d support a resolution urging Republicans in Congress to vote on a Supreme Court nominee. She said such resolutions are like “letters to Santa Claus.”
Scalia was found dead over the weekend at 79. He joined the court in 1986 and was its longest-serving justice.
U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has said Obama should allow his successor to fill the vacancy.
Democrats counter that Obama is president until Jan. 20, 2017, and has every constitutional right to nominate Scalia’s replacement.
Obama has said he will nominate a replacement in due time.
The Aurora Sentinel news desk contributed to this report.