Sen. Martha McSally looking forward to voting on Supreme Court nominee

PHOENIX – U.S. Sen. Martha McSally said Wednesday she and her Republican colleagues will complete their work on the U.S. Supreme Court nominee deliberately and without delay.

“The Constitution is clear: the president gets to nominate, the Senate advises and does consent, so we’ll go through that process,” McSally said Wednesday on KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News.

President Donald Trump said Saturday he would announce the nominee, “most likely” a woman, he added, to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday of pancreatic cancer.

No nominee has won confirmation so quickly since Arizona’s Sandra Day O’Connor — with no opposition from either party — became the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court in 1981.

“Once there’s a nomination, I’ll be getting to know that person and certainly be having conversations,” McSally said.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has vowed that Trump’s nominee “will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate” but has been careful about not saying when that will happen.

Five women made the president’s short list, including Judge Amy Coney Barrett from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and Judge Barbara Lagoa of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.

“Some of the women on the list have recently been confirmed to appellate court, so they’ve already been through a vetting process,” McSally said.

Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate. So far Republicans Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski have both said they won’t support a confirmation vote before Election Day but Utah’s Mitt Romney said Tuesday he wouldn’t oppose the vote if the nominee reaches the chamber floor.

“They’re highly qualified women. It’s great he’s going to pick a woman to be in this lifetime appointment,” McSally said.

“It’s an exciting time.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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