America
Obama picks white judge as apex court nominee
Washington, March 16
President Barack Obama
on Wednesday chose a white judge over Indian American Sri Srinivasan as
his nominee to the Supreme Court, setting up a dramatic political fight
with Senate Republicans who have vowed to block his choice.
Obama's
nominee Merrick Garland, 63, a judge on the US Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia, is much older than Chandigarh-born Srinivasan and
other contenders on his short list such as judges Paul Watford and Jane
Kelly.
In a speech in the White House Rose Garden, Obama praised
Garland, a graduate of Harvard and Harvard Law School and an appointee
of president Bill Clinton as "one of America sharpest legal minds".
After
conducting interviews last week, Obama is reported to have narrowed his
list to include Srinivasan, Garland, and Watford, each of them
considered "consensus" candidates for their history in gaining
confirmation support from Republicans.
But Senate Republicans do
not plan to vet or have hearings on the nominee, and say the next
president should be able to choose a replacement for justice Antonin
Scalia who died last month.
Obama and Democrats argue that with
10 months left in his term, there is plenty of time for the Senate to
take up and confirm a new justice.
Garland's supporters argue he
is the nominee that the senators couldn't refuse even in a contentious
environment, according to CNN. "He's the establishment of the
establishment," one backer was quoted as saying.
Obama's formal announcement came hours after telling his supporters in an email: "I've made my decision."
"I've devoted a considerable amount of time and deliberation to this decision," he wrote.
"I've
consulted with legal experts and people across the political spectrum,
both inside and outside government. And we've reached out to every
member of the Senate, who each have a responsibility to do their job and
take this nomination just as seriously."
(Arun Kumar can be contacted at [email protected])