--- title: McConnell: Senate May Review Supreme Court Nominee in 2020 description: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicated that a GOP Senate would take up a President Trump Supreme Court nomination in 2020. canonical: https://time.com/5418051/mitch-mcconnell-senate-trump-supreme-court-nomination-2020/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-10-07T17:12:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-13T08:02:00.381Z article:section: Politics og:title: Sen. McConnell: GOP Senate Could Take Up a Supreme Court Nomination in 2020 og:description: McConnell said 'we’ll see if there is a vacancy in 2020' og:url: https://time.com/5418051/mitch-mcconnell-senate-trump-supreme-court-nomination-2020/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltad3017c54c4e474f/69893c098fd2ee865f35ccfd/mitch-mcconnell-trump-supreme-court-2020.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4955 og:image:height: 2787 og:image:alt: mitch-mcconnell-trump-supreme-court-2020 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Sen. McConnell: GOP Senate Could Take Up a Supreme Court Nomination in 2020 twitter:description: McConnell said 'we’ll see if there is a vacancy in 2020' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltad3017c54c4e474f/69893c098fd2ee865f35ccfd/mitch-mcconnell-trump-supreme-court-2020.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 01:31 video:published: 2018-10-06 section: politics topics: Kavanaugh confirmation, Senate Republicans, presumption of innocence, Republican base mobilization, midterm elections, red state races, Judiciary Committee, partisan tactics genre: news, political commentary tones: triumphant, combative, confident, partisan emotions: pride (high), excitement (high), anger (medium), satisfaction (medium) sentiment: positive audience: political news readers, Republican voters, voters in competitive states, political observers people: Mitch McConnell, Brett Kavanaugh, Senator Manchin organizations: Senate Republican conference, Senate Judiciary Committee content_suitability: politics [00:00-01:31]; hate [00:28-01:05]; crime [00:28-01:05] transcript_source: publisher captions transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # Sen. McConnell: GOP Senate Could Take Up a Supreme Court Nomination in 2020 > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=6a75f082-01d4-4674-b5b3-bee91d9c3588&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Mitch McConnell Is Confident Country Will Move Past Kavanaugh Fight [Watch (HLS stream): Mitch McConnell Is Confident Country Will Move Past Kavanaugh Fight](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/x3ygmKX2.m3u8) (1:31)  _Published 2018-10-06. Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Says Nomination Battle Good for Republicans_ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell reacts to the confirmation of Justice Kavanaugh, calling it a good day for America and the Senate. He credits Senate Republicans for standing up for the presumption of innocence and resisting intimidation from protesters. He argues that the bitter confirmation fight energized the Republican base ahead of competitive races in red states. ## Key points - McConnell says he spoke with Justice Kavanaugh and the president to congratulate them on Kavanaugh's victory. (00:03) - McConnell says the Senate stood up for the presumption of innocence during the nomination process. (00:18) - McConnell says Senate Republicans refused to be intimidated by a mob coming after Republican members at their homes and in the halls. (00:28) - McConnell says he is prouder of the Senate Republican conference than ever before. (00:36) - McConnell thanks Senator Manchin for helping Republicans get the nomination through. (00:40) - McConnell says the tactics of Judiciary Committee Democrats and the virtual mob fired up the Republican base. (00:52) - McConnell says the Democratic tactics gave Republicans an advantage going into competitive red state races. (01:12) - McConnell says the other side is also fired up, having been that way all year. (01:28) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:18] Congratulating Kavanaugh and the president. McConnell opens by joking about landslides and says he congratulated Kavanaugh and the president on the victory. - [00:18 to 00:40] Defending the presumption of innocence. McConnell says the Senate stood up for the presumption of innocence and resisted intimidation from protesters. - [00:40 to 01:31] Mobilizing the Republican base. McConnell says the opposition's tactics energized Republicans and gave them an advantage in competitive races. ## Key quotes - [00:18] Mitch McConnell: "We stood up for the presumption of innocence." - [00:28] Mitch McConnell: "We refused to be intimidated by the mob of" - [00:52] Mitch McConnell: "The tactics that have been employed both" - [01:12] Mitch McConnell: "the advantage that these guys by their" - [01:25] Mitch McConnell: "They managed to deliver the only thing that we had not" ## Questions this video answers - How does McConnell describe the outcome of the Kavanaugh confirmation? [00:03] - What principle does McConnell say the Senate defended during the nomination process? [00:18] - How does McConnell describe the treatment of Republican members during the process? [00:28] - Why does McConnell say the confirmation fight benefits Republicans in upcoming races? [01:12] - What role does McConnell say Senator Manchin played? [00:40] ## Content suitability - politics [00:00-01:31]: Entire video is partisan political commentary on a contentious Supreme Court confirmation. - hate [00:28-01:05]: References to a mob coming after Republican members at their homes and assaulting people, framed as intimidation. - crime [00:28-01:05]: References to intimidation of Republican members at their homes and a virtual mob that assaulted people. by [Erik Wasson / Bloomberg](https://time.com/author/bloomberg/) ## Erik Wasson / Bloomberg Contributor Oct 7, 2018 5:12 PM UTC Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Says Nomination Battle Good for Republicans by [Erik Wasson / Bloomberg](https://time.com/author/bloomberg/) ## Erik Wasson / Bloomberg Contributor Oct 7, 2018 5:12 PM UTC (Bloomberg) — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell indicated that a Republican Senate would take up a nomination to the Supreme Court made by President Donald Trump in 2020, the next presidential election year. McConnell blocked Democratic President Barack Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court in 2016, arguing at the time that voters should have a say in the matter in that year’s election. Garland wasn’t granted a hearing or a vote. Asked on “Fox News Sunday” if the same logic would apply in 2020, McConnell said “we’ll see if there is a vacancy in 2020.” The Kentucky senator then said that the tradition in the Senate since 1880 has been that a vacancy is not filled by a president in an election year — if the Senate is controlled by the opposing party. That appears to indicate the Garland rationale wouldn’t apply if a Republican president has a Republican Senate majority. ## Proudest Moment McConnell also said Saturday’s confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court is his proudest moment as a senator. “We stood up to the mob,” he said. “This has been an extraordinarily productive Congress.” In a separate appearance on CBS News’s “Face the Nation,” the majority leader predicted that the anti-Kavanaugh protests will backfire by energizing the Republican base in the Nov. 6 mid-term elections, in which the GOP is looking to hang on to its majorities in the House and Senate. A new CBS poll released on Sunday suggested the court battle may have hurt Democratic Senate hopes in states like Texas and Tennessee, where more voters wanted the Senate to confirm Kavanaugh than not. On the same program, McConnell chuckled when asked if Republicans will not campaign against West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin now that he voted for Kavanaugh — the only Democrat to do so. ## ‘Still a Democrat’ “Manchin is still a Democrat and we’re trying to hold onto our majority,” he said. McConnell also indicated he wouldn’t try to punish Alaskan Republican Lisa Murkowski for her vote against on Kavanaugh, saying she is a member of his conference in good standing. Trump, at a rally in Kansas on Saturday, called Murkowski’s vote “disgraceful.” McConnell predicted that the House and Senate will soon wrap up talks over a bill creating a new process for congressional employees to make sexual harassment and assault allegations against lawmakers. “That is something I know will get done before the end of the year,” he said on CBS. ## Transcript [00:00] I always thought landslides were kinda boring anyway. [00:03] [ LAUGH ] Had a chance to talk to Justice Kavanaugh [00:08] and congratulate him on his victory, and also, [00:13] the president. This is a good day for America, and [00:18] an important day for the Senate. We [00:24] stood up for the presumption of innocence. We [00:28] refused to be intimidated by the mob of [00:33] people that were coming after Republican members of [00:36] their homes, in the halls. I couldn't be prouder of [00:40] the Senate Republican conference. We also want to [00:44] thank Senator Manchin for helping us. We finally [00:48] discovered the one thing that would fire up the [00:50] Republican base and we didn't think of it. The other [00:52] side did it. The tactics that have been employed both [00:56] by Judiciary committee democratic senators and [01:01] by the virtual mob that's assaulted. All of us in the [01:05] course of this process has turned our base [01:09] on fire. I was talking to two of my political advisers [01:12] yesterday about the advantage that these guys by their [01:16] tactics have given to us Going into these red state [01:19] competitive races. And we're pretty excited. They [01:24] managed to deliver the only thing that we had not [01:25] been able to figure out how to do, which was to get our [01:28] folks fired up. The other side is obviously fired up, [01:30] they have been all year ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5418051/mitch-mcconnell-senate-trump-supreme-court-nomination-2020/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5418051/mitch-mcconnell-senate-trump-supreme-court-nomination-2020/"},"headline":"Sen. 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