Fact Check: Can President Trump Assign a New Supreme Court Justice in Just 6 Weeks?

On September 18, United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away, and now the public is waiting who will fill her vacant seat.

President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have vowed to nominate and confirm a replacement for the women's rights icon.

Replacing Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg

The 2020 presidential election is just a few weeks away, and the public is wondering if President Trump has enough time to replace Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg.

Another thing that the public is waiting for is the effect of the president's nomination. The Supreme Court has been split when it comes to important cases such as voting rights, gay marriage, the Affordable Care Act, affirmative action, gerrymandering, and gun rights.

If a conservative replaces Justice Ginsburg who was a liberal, there will be a 6-3 tilt towards the right for years.

According to Fox News, there is bound to be opposition from the Democrats. However the politics play out, there is a process for Supreme Court nominations and confirmations.

Also Read: Death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Opens Debate on Possible Nominees, Poses Huge Impact on Presidential Race

The steps

The first step is the president nominating the next Supreme Court Justice. Article II, section 2 of the Constitution of the United States gives the president that power.

So long as the president is in the White House, President Trump can nominate whomever he wants to replace Justice Ginsburg. The appointment is a three-step process: the nomination by the president, the confirmation by the Senate, and the appointment by the president again.

The second step involves the United States Senate. The nomination will first be considered by a smaller group within the Senate called the Senate Judiciary Committee.

That has been the process since the 19th century. The only exception was in 2016 when the Judiciary Committee refused to consider President Obama's nomination of Judge Garland.

The Judiciary Committee currently has 22 members; 12 Republicans and 10 Democrats. They will conduct an investigation into the nominee's background. The process could take 30 to 45 days.

The committee holds a public hearing, in which the nominee is questioned and may give testimony about everything from judicial philosophy to their stand on important cases such as abortion. The committee will then report its recommendation to the full Senate as either favorable, negative or no recommendation.

The third step involves the full Senate. The Senate is majority Republican, with 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats, and two independents, who both caucus with the Democrats.

If the motion that the nomination be considered is made during a special session of the Senate, then the motion itself is debatable and can be blocked by filibuster.

However, closing debate on the motion so that the Senate could move on to a vote no longer requires 60 votes, just 51-Senator majority so filibustering is not as effective anymore.

The last step is the vote to confirm, which requires a simple majority of the senators present and voting. If the nominee is confirmed, the secretary of the Senate will transmit the confirmation vote to the president. The president will sign a commission appointing the person to the Supreme Court.

The timing

The Senate has never filled a Supreme Court vacancy so close to a presidential election. There is no enough time as the process takes months before a new Justice can be assigned.