House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif) is prepared to take action if President Donald Trump attempts to push a Supreme Court nominee through in a lame duck session if Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is elected in November.
“We have our options; we have arrows in our quiver that I’m not about to discuss right now. But the fact is, we have a big challenge in our country. This president has threatened to not even accept the results of the election with statements that he and his henchmen have made,” Pelosi said during her appearance on ABC’s “This Week.”
She added, “So right now, our main goal… would be to protect the integrity of the election as we protect the American people from the coronavirus.”
Host George Stephanopoulos questioned Pelosi about whether Democrats are “ruling anything out.”
Pelosi stressed the responsibility lawmakers have to protect the American people.
Watch her comments below:
“We have our options. We have arrows in our quiver that I’m not about to discuss right now,” Pelosi tells @GStephanopoulos when pressed on what Democrats would do if Republicans move to confirm a Trump SCOTUS pick in a lame duck session if Biden wins. https://t.co/FIvnhfahWK pic.twitter.com/55i2KuREx9
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) September 20, 2020
“We have a responsibility, we take an oath to protect and defend the constitution of the United States,” Pelosi said.
She continued, “We have a responsibility to meet the needs of the American people. When we weigh the equities of protecting our democracy, requires us to use every arrow in our quiver.”
Pelosi’s comments come just days after the Supreme Court announced the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday, as IJR previously reported.
Ginsburg died from complications of metastatic pancreas cancer at the age of 87.
Her granddaughter Clara Spera released a statement shortly after Ginsburg’s death that revealed her dying wish, as IJR previously reported.
“My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed,” Ginsburg said.
Former President Barack Obama and other Democratic leaders urged Republicans to wait until after the November election to fill Ginsburg’s vacancy.