Donald Trump was at a campaign rally when Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death was announced on Friday night. He reacted with uncharacteristic dignity when he heard the news, coming off of one of his lie-filled rallies.
Said Trump as the strains of Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer” played in the background: “She just died? Wow. I didn’t know that. You’re telling me now for the first time. She led an amazing life…She was an amazing woman, whether you agreed or not, she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. I’m actually saddened to hear that. I am sad to hear that.”
At the rally, Trump had actually floated the notion of putting Senator Ted Cruz on the court, the Daily Beast reports:
“I’m putting Ted Cruz as one of the people for the Supreme Court. And you know why I did it? Because I wanted to make sure that I had somebody on the list … We had about 45 unbelievable people… the smartest, the best, the absolute creme de la creme. The best minds in the country, conservative; they believe in the Constitution. I have to have somebody that we’re going to make sure we get approved, and the only one I could think of was Ted because he’s going to get 50 Republican votes and he’ll get 50 Democrat votes. We will defend the dignity of work and the sanctity of life. That’s why the Supreme Court is so important. The next President will get one, two, three, or four Supreme Court Justices…If you don’t get it right we will not have a country anymore.”
Trump later released this statement:
ABC News reported that Trump plans to put forth a nominee in the coming days.
Senator Mitch McConnell said on Friday night that he plans to hold a Senate vote on that nominee.
