‘Delay, Delay, Delay’: Trump Gives ‘Mitch and the Entire Group’ in Senate Advice on Picking Next Supreme Court Justice

GREENVILLE, S.C. — GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump issued some advice to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and the rest in the Senate when filling the vacancy in the Supreme Court following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia: “delay, delay, delay.”

The CBS News GOP debate opened Saturday night with a brief memorial and moment of science for Scalia, and the candidates were all asked about the appointment of the next justice in the wake of his death. Answering first, Trump said he was “absolutely sure” President Barack Obama would attempt to nominate a new justice before his term is finished.

Trump said that he too would “certainly want to try” to fill that vacancy if he were president.

Republican presidential candidate, businessman Donald Trump speaks during the CBS News Republican presidential debate at the Peace Center, Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016, in Greenville, S.C. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

“I hope that the Senate is going to be able, Mitch and the entire group, is going to be able to do something about it in terms of delay,” Trump said. “You could have a Diane Sykes or you could have a Bill Pryor. We have some fantastic people, but this is a tremendous blow to conservatism. It’s a tremendous blow, frankly, to our country.”

“I think it’s up to Mitch McConnell and everybody else to stop it. It’s called delay, delay, delay,” he continued.

McConnell has said the vacancy should not be filled until there is new president.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich also advocated against nominating a new justice until a new president is in office.

“I would like the president to just, for once here, to put the country first,” Kasich said. “We’re going to have an election very soon and the people will understand what is at stake in that election.”

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