Fact #14: Grassley Belatedly Finds Another Excuse to Block Supreme Court

DES MOINES, Iowa – Recently, Chuck Grassley piled on yet another excuse for his unprecedented blockade of the Supreme Court.
 
When pressed during a meeting with the Des Moines Register Editorial Board in response to a question on the harm in holding a hearing for the Supreme Court Justice, Chuck Grassley said:
 
“Sure, sure. Umm, I suppose, the tradition is – and I’m not sure I would follow this tradition because I know who I have on my staff, I know how deep you have to go into going through a person’s record, in order to hold a hearing that’s worthwhile. And so you appropriate – you get special, not appropriations – you get ‘special’ from the rules committee; additional money to hire additional legal people. My staff tells me that’s about a half a million to $750,000 to hire people to maybe work for three or four months to do it. And so when 52 senators say they aren’t going to take it up, should I spend that money and have a hearing?” [MSNBC, 10/25]
 
“Chuck Grassley continues to grasp at straws as he finds yet another excuse for his unprecedented obstruction of the Supreme Court,” said Campaign Spokesperson Sam Roecker. “Chuck Grassley’s excuses so far include inaccurately citing different precedents that stretch all the way back to the 1800s and floating the possibility of a lame-duck confirmation if his buddy Donald Trump isn’t elected. With all of Chuck Grassley’s scrambling for excuses, it’s become clear to everyone that he is on the wrong side of history, and he knows it.”