A crowd assembled outside the Supreme Court loudly booed President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump as they attempted to pay their respects to the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Thursday morning.
Appearing on the porch of the Supreme Court, where Ginsburg lay in state, Trump and the first lady wore black masks and bowed their heads solemnly with eyes closed as the crowd assembled at the barricades below jeered at them, screaming, “Vote him out!” and “Honor her wish!” The two quickly turned to leave after the shouting began, returning into the Supreme Court building and heading back to the presidential motorcade.
JUST IN: Pres. Trump arrives at the Supreme Court to pay respects to judicial icon Ruth Bader Ginsburg, as onlookers shout "Vote him out!" https://t.co/24QeUyEDzK pic.twitter.com/DqJAKbqY5B
— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) September 24, 2020
Chants of “Vote him out!” and “Honor her wish!” outside the Supreme Court as the president arrives pic.twitter.com/lys9EqBuNs
— Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) September 24, 2020
The fight to replace Ginsburg has already become a heated partisan issue, with many Democrats demanding that Trump and Senate Republicans honor what was reportedly Ginsburg’s “most fervent wish” that she not be replaced until after the inauguration.
Earlier this week, even a ceremonial resolution introduced by Republicans intended to honor the late justice became a point of contention after Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) attempted to slip in an amendment about the alleged dying wish, which Trump has speculated was actually written by Democratic leadership to be used as an emotionalized political bludgeon. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) blocked the amended resolution.
Despite furious opposition from Democrats, Trump said he plans to name a new Supreme Court justice nominee on Saturday, after funeral ceremonies for Ginsburg are over. He has vowed to name a woman, and many speculate that he intends to nominate Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a conservative Roman Catholic.
President Donald Trump told a crowd of supporters at a campaign rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina, that he will nominate a woman to the Supreme Court to fill the vacancy left by the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday after a battle with cancer.
“It will be a woman, a very talented, very brilliant woman,” said Trump, who received cheers from the crowd in response to his statement. “We have numerous women on the list. I built this incredible list of brilliant people.”
Trump later tweeted a video containing some of his remarks about filling the vacancy from the North Carolina rally, saying to cheers: “I will be putting forth a nominee next week. It will be a woman.” At a different point during the rally, he praised the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as an inspiration to all Americans, and noted that her relationship with the late Justice Antonin Scalia is a “powerful reminder that we can disagree on fundamental issues while treating each other with decency, dignity, and respect.”
Trump, who added over a dozen names to his Supreme Court list earlier this week, also called on Biden to release a similar list of people who the Democratic nominee, if elected in November, would nominate to fill a vacancy on the nation’s highest court.