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During Thursday’s White House press briefing, spokesman Josh Earnest stumbled when asked whether the President will be taking politics into account in his decision for a U.S. Supreme Court nominee.
“Are you saying that he’s not taking politics into account at all when thinking about the possibility of having a court that would have five liberal justices instead of five conservative justices?” a reporter asked.
“Well, listen… Politics are going to be part of this, particularly in an election year. I don’t think anybody disputes that,” Earnest replied.
After admitting that politics will, in fact, play a part in the President’s decision, the press secretary quickly backtracked.
“No, I don’t think so,” said Earnest. “The President’s made clear that he’s not on the ballot. The President’s interested in fulfilling his constitutional duty to appoint the person that he believes is the best person in America to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court.”
“The President’s not going to be asking who that person voted for in the 2008 or 2012 election,” he continued. “He’s not going to be asking that person which party they’re registered to vote in. The President’s going to be asking them much more relevant questions -- about their legal qualifications and about their view of the law.”
Listen to Earnest's remarks at Thursday's White House press briefing below.