Senator Carper Meets with U.S. Supreme Court Nominee Merrick Garland

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement after meeting with Merrick Garland, Chief Judge of the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, who President Obama has nominated to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

“President Obama has nominated an impeccably qualified individual for the Supreme Court, and our meeting today only served to reinforce this fact. I appreciate Judge Garland’s willingness to serve our country and, frankly, his willingness to endure the grueling process of being considered for this appointment. During our meeting, I was struck by Judge Garland’s humility and respect for the law. I was also impressed by his personal character. Even during this arduous process, he continues to serve his community as a mentor to elementary school students in Washington, D.C.

“Before coming to the Senate, I was privileged to serve as Governor of Delaware and was charged with the solemn duty to nominate dozens of men and women to serve as judges in our courts – including Delaware’s Supreme Court, Court of Chancery, Superior Court, and Family Court. When I reviewed candidates to serve on Delaware’s courts, I looked for people who were bright and knew the law, worked hard, followed the Golden Rule, and showed good judgement, good judicial temperament, and an ability to build judicial consensus. Judge Garland’s unparalleled reputation as a brilliant and dedicated prosecutor and jurist clearly meets all these criteria, and he certainly fits the bill to serve.

“It’s disappointing that most of my Republican colleagues continue their refusal to consider Judge Garland’s nomination to serve on our highest court. It’s unfortunate that this nomination has been reduced to nothing more than a political spectacle. The American people deserve better. Judge Garland deserves better. Every member of the Senate has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution, some of us many times over, and failing to consider this nomination is an abdication of our responsibilities to this country. It’s also a blatant example of playing politics with the Constitution we’ve sworn to uphold. We have been sent to the Senate by the American people to put democracy into action. Until we move forward with this nomination, we are delaying justice, and we know all too well that justice delayed is justice denied. It’s time for us to do our job and move quickly to fill this vacancy, and restore the Supreme Court to full strength.”