Subject: Houston Chronicle: Abbott blasts Roberts, calls U.S. Supreme Court a 'political body'
From: "Garcia, Walter" <[email-masked]>
To: Comm_D <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 21 Apr 2016 12:07:15 -0700

Flagged this article for TX Dems; now includes a quote from them below. They'll also be sending a release on this later today.

Democrats in Washington and Texas have accused Republicans of politicizing the Supreme Court in the case of Garland. "It is shocking that Republican Gov. Greg Abbott is shamelessly encouraging Senate Republicans to ignore their constitutional obligation, cash in a paycheck from the American taxpayer, and sit idly by," said Texas Democratic Party Deputy Executive Director Manny Garcia. "Every single day Texans get up and do their job. They expect everyone in government, Democrat and Republican alike, to do theirs as well."

Abbott blasts Roberts, calls U.S. Supreme Court a 'political body'<http://www.chron.com/news/politics/article/Abbott-calls-U-S-Chief-Justice-Roberts-Court-a-7287515.php?cmpid=twitter-desktop>

By Kevin Diaz<http://www.chron.com/author/kevin-diaz/>

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, wading into the battle over  President Barack Obama's nominee to fill the Supreme Court vacancy caused by the death of Associate Justice Antonin Scalia, said Thursday that high court "deserves to be swept up into the political process."

Abbott, siding with Senate Republicans who have refused to hold hearings on Merrick Garland, also took a shot at Chief Justice John Roberts, who was appointed to the court by former President George W. Bush.

"Chief Justice John Roberts is the tip of the spear in playing politics," Abbott said. "Chief Justice John Roberts knowingly, clearly and unabashedly re-wrote Obamacare twice. What we are seeing is nothing more than naked politics being played by the United States Supreme Court."

Abbott's criticism of Roberts, echoing that of Texas U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz,  came during a press roundtable at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank where the governor promoted his idea of leading a convention of states to amend the U.S. Constitution to limit the power of the federal government.

The first-term Republican governor also criticized Obama's executive orders on immigration, now under review by the Supreme Court in a Texas-led lawsuit.

Abbott, a litigant before the Supreme Court, expressed confidence that Texas will prevail in its legal challenge, even as he accused the justices of playing politics in past rulings, particularly in upholding Obama's health care overhaul.

"Now, more than ever the United States Supreme Court has shed its clothing as being guardians of the law," he said. "The United States Supreme Court is more of a political body than it has ever been in the United States of America. And because, on its own, by its own fault, as an institution, it has chosen to be a political body, it deserves to be swept up into the political process."

Abbott said that includes resisting Obama's efforts to fill the Scalia vacancy "for political reasons,"  by not holding hearings or voting on the president's nominee.

"Why should they go through a dog and pony show when they have concluded that they are not going to consent to confirming this nominee?" he said. Asked if that meant the U.S. Senate is under no obligation to undergo a deliberative process to consider the nominee, Abbott answered, "Show me in the United States Constitution where that process is."

Republicans as well as Democrats - including Obama - have sometimes criticized Court decision they dislike. But few have embraced an openly partisan strategy in the selection of Supreme Court justices, who serve lifetime appointments.

Democrats in Washington and Texas have accused Republicans of politicizing the Supreme Court in the case of Garland. "It is shocking that Republican Gov. Greg Abbott is shamelessly encouraging Senate Republicans to ignore their constitutional obligation, cash in a paycheck from the American taxpayer, and sit idly by," said Texas Democratic Party Deputy Executive Director Manny Garcia. "Every single day Texans get up and do their job. They expect everyone in government, Democrat and Republican alike, to do theirs as well."

Republican leaders in Congress, including Texas U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, have called for Scalia's replacement to be made after the 2016 presidential election. While the Senate GOP majority has the power to sit on Obama's pick, Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada has said he is considering a rare parliamentary maneuver to force a vote. "There are many procedural things we can do," he told reporters earlier this month.

Republicans argue that giving the pick to the next president would give voters a greater voice in the matter. But a new NBC-Wall Street Journal poll suggests that Democrats are winning the public relations battle.

The poll released Monday, found a 52 percent majority of Americans now believe the Senate should hold a confirmation vote on Garland this year. In February, that figure was 43 percent.

--

Walter Garcia
Democratic National Committee (DNC)
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@WalterGarcia231<https://twitter.com/WalterGarcia231>
[SigDems]<http://www.democrats.org/>