Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut said he would support Court of Appeals for the Distric of Columbia Judge Merrick Garland to replace former FBI Director James Comey Thursday.
His comments echo those of Utah GOP Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee, who suggested the White House consider former President Barrack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee.
“I’d support Merrick Garland for almost anything. I’d support him for FBI director — I have my doubts about whether he’d want to do it,” Blumenthal told reporters.
Republican senators pushed back against holding a nomination hearing for Garland ahead of the election but have since referred to him as a “fine fellow.”
Hatch said he floated the name to the White House but thinks there are some other great candidates.
“I didn’t say they should just pick him. I know they’ve got some really excellent people, but I said put Merrick on the list too,” he told reporters. (RELATED: The Case For Merrick Garland As FBI Director)
Democratic Sen. Brain Schatz of Hawaii took to social media to accuse Republicans of being disingenuous in their suggestion to appoint Garland.
On Merrick Garland for FBI head, this seems…unserious. pic.twitter.com/5q3JsFDjUO
— Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) May 11, 2017
Blumenthal said he plans to take action to ensure the investigation into Trump’s alleged connection with Russia is properly looked into following the president’s decision to fire Comey Tuesday.
“I will be introducing legislation to create an independent investigation or special prosecutor — something like the kind of three-judge panel that existed before 1999,” he said.
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