Florida Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson says after meeting Merrick Garland, President Obama’s nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court, he’s backing Garland.
On Wednesday, Nelson met with Merrick Garland, a chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
In a statement, Nelson says Garland is “qualified, and should be confirmed as soon as possible.” But the Republican-led U.S. Senate has yet to reconsider its position to not take up the nomination.
Back in February, Nelson told reporters that’s not right.
“That’s not how the Constitution works,” said Nelson. “So, I think it’s a very serious constitutional responsibility that I take seriously, to record a vote on a presidential nominee for a vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court.”
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican, has supported the position to let the next president decide the nominee to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Rubio has said while he’s more than willing to meet with anyone, he sees no point in meeting with Garland.
Still, Garland has met with a number of Congress members already, including some Republicans.
