Obama, Senate Fight over Supreme Court Nomination
POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: As President Obama chooses his replacement for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, he is also scolding Senate Republicans who say they will block whomever he nominates. But some are calling the president a hypocrite, pointing back to 2006 when then-Senator Obama supported the filibuster against confirming conservative Justice Samuel Alito and also voted against the nomination. Just today, about an hour ago, the White House came out and said the president regrets supporting that filibuster.</s>JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: As the president alluded to yesterday, he regrets the vote that he made because, frankly, I mean, as we've discussed, Democrats should have been in the position where they were making a public case. That's what Democrats should have done. And they shouldn't have looked for a way to just throw sand in the gears of the process. And frankly, looking back on it, the president believes that they should have just followed his own advice.</s>HARLOW: Republicans showing no sign of backing down from their threats over Obama's nominee. But is there a person who could force the GOP's hand on this? My next guest says yes. He names the person. It is someone extremely familiar with the high court because she sat on it, former Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Joining me William Blake, assistant professor of political science at the University of Maryland in Baltimore. He floated this idea in an op-ed in the "Baltimore Sun." Thank you for being here.</s>WILLIAM BLAKE, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, BALTIMORE: My pleasure.</s>HARLOW: Let's get your reaction to what Josh Earnest just said, basically, came out and said the president was wrong, he admits it. He shouldn't have, as he put it, thrown sands in the wheels of the way government should work. What's your reaction?</s>BLAKE: Well, every Supreme Court confirmation since Robert Bork's failed attempt has been markedly different. Justice Scalia liked to point out that he was confirmed unanimously.</s>HARLOW: Yeah.</s>BLAKE: But we're in a different political environment now. And if President Obama is worried about a Senate filibuster, I think the single best way for him to minimize the chance of a filibuster is to put forward just O'Connor's name.</s>HARLOW: All right. So she's 86 years old. Obviously, you write about that as an asset in this piece, in this light. At the same time, doesn't the president want to nominate someone and get them confirm who will sit on the court for a long time?</s>BLAKE: Sure. Ideally, that's what any president would like to do, especially when the justice he's replacing had been nominated from the president of the opposite political party. But President Obama is in the last year of his term. The Senate is controlled by an increasingly polarized Republican party. I'm not sure how much he can steer the court significantly to the left and have that legacy last for 20 or 30 years. So in the meantime, he could keep the court fully staffed. I think an O'Connor nomination would sail through. And that would serve the Supreme Court in the short-term. In the long run, whoever wins this coming presidential election will then have the chance to really shape the long-term direction of the court.</s>HARLOW: Your argument here about the president nominating Sandra Day O'Connor, it could happen. It would be a huge surprise if it happened. I'm interested, I mean, you studied this stuff, who else do you think he could nominate that would be just a shock to everyone?</s>BLAKE: I think that my suggestion from my op-ed that I co-wrote with my friend and colleague, Hans Hoccer (ph), from Arkansas State University -- I think that -- we've been sort of criticized for being too out of the box on this one. I'm not sure what direction President Obama is going to lean towards. It really depends on whether he wants a fight with the Senate this year or not.</s>HARLOW: Look, I think it's really interesting what you point out, the fact that, you know, this is a woman who was nominated to the court by Ronald Reagan. If we've heard one name more in this election on the Republican side than anyone outside of the candidates, it's been Ronald Reagan. That makes it tough for Republicans in the Senate to try to block it?</s>BLAKE: I think you are absolutely right. As we argued in our op-ed, a vote against reconfirming Sandra Day O'Connor is an admission that the patron saints of the modern-day Republican Party made a mistake. I think Republicans would be in a very difficult position justifying keeping Justice O'Connor off the court. Again, this is where her age comes into play as a potential asset. Because nominating a nearly 86-year-old is certainly unorthodox. And so Senate Republicans would not be able to go to their base and say, we are fighting over the future of the court for the next 25 years. Instead, they would really be fighting over what happens in the next year or so.</s>HARLOW: William Blake, a fascinating read in the "Baltimore Sun." Thank you very much. We appreciate it. Erin, back to you.</s>ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Poppy. As Republicans get ready to face voters during our CNN town hall here, where I am in South Carolina tonight, it has arguably been the nastiest day on the campaign trail. Incredibly nasty. Fights erupting. Ted Cruz calling Donald Trump's bluff over a lawsuit threat. Just moments ago, a major endorsement. Someone backed Marco Rubio who could move the leader. And in Nevada, Hillary Clinton's lead, it was a stunning lead, gone, evaporated into thin air days before the caucus there for Democrats. What Bernie Sanders is doing in the 11th hour to pull off a major momentum-building surprise. We'll be right back.