Thread by @BLaw

"Good Behaviour"

It's the only requirement for the job of Supreme Court justice established in the U.S. Constitution. The rest is up to the President and the Senate. blawgo.com/Xhp6K7p

Here's how Supreme Court justices are confirmed 👇

Traditionally, three-fifths of the Senate had to agree to take a final vote. With no party holding that many seats during a SCOTUS confirmation in four decades, the rule had assured some bipartisan support.

🗳️ In 2017, Senate Democrats blocked a vote to approve Neil Gorsuch.

In response, Senate Majority Leader McConnell invoked the “nuclear option” and called for a simple majority vote, allowing Gorsuch to be confirmed and lowering the threshold for future high court picks.

Why do Democrats say precedent should prevent that?

President Obama had an opportunity to make a third SCOTUS nomination when Justice Scalia died. After Obama nominated Merrick Garland, GOP senators refused to hold confirmation hearings on the grounds it was an election year.

Could a justice be confirmed in the time before the election? The process typically involves:

➡️ One-on-one meetings
➡️ The nominee completes a lengthy background questionnaire
➡️ A week of hearings followed by a vote two weeks later in the full Senate

⌛️ The average time from nomination to Senate vote was 69.6 days for the 15 candidates prior to Kavanaugh.

The current rules give Trump a shot at replacing liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and strengthening the conservative majority before Nov. 3.