claim: says senate republicans are "following a longstanding tradition of not filling vacancies on the supreme court in the middle of a presidential election year."
author: mitch mcconnell
evidence_1: feb 17, 2016 ... they say there's “a long tradition” and historical “precedent” for presidents not to  fill a supreme court vacancy in their last year in office or during an election ...  cruz said “it has been 80 years since a supreme court vacancy was nominated  and confirmed in an election year,” citing this as a “long tradition.
evidence_2: mar 20, 2016 ... you have to go back 80 years to find the last time a vacancy on the supreme  court created in a presidential election year was filled. you have to go ... so, all  we're doing, chris, is following a long standing tradition of not filling vacancies on  the supreme court in the middle of a presidential election year.
evidence_3: feb 17, 2016 ... the republicans have repeated one specific verse in their chorus against  president barack obama's expected supreme court nomination following the  death of justice antonin scalia. it sounds something like this: there hasn't been a  supreme court vacancy filled in an election year in 80 years. iowa sen.
evidence_4: feb 13, 2016 ... on november 30, 1987, president ronald reagan (a republican) nominated  justice anthony kennedy to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of lewis  powell. a democratic-controlled senate confirmed kennedy (who followed  robert bork and douglas ginsburg as nominees for that slot) on february ...
evidence_5: apr 3, 2017 ... politifact concluded that a statement mcconnell made shortly after garland was  nominated that senate republicans were "following a longstanding tradition of  not filling vacancies on the supreme court in the middle of a presidential election  year" was "misleading" and "false." the fact-checking site noted ...