Merrick Garland declared Obama's Supreme Court nominee
Online Desk
17 Mar 2016 06:10 AM
Judge Merrick Garland (C) speaks after US President Barack Obama, with Vice President Joe Biden (L), announced Garland's nomination to the US Supreme Court, in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, DC, on March 16, 2016. Photo- AFP
President Barack Obama has nominated veteran appeals court judge Merrick Garland to be the next US Supreme Court Justice, reports the BBC.
The Supreme Court vacancy follows the death of Antonin Scalia last month.
Judge Garland, 63, is viewed as a moderate and has won praise from senior Republican figures.
The appointment has to be ratified by the Senate, but its Republican majority has vowed to block a vote on any Supreme Court nominee from Mr Obama.
Republicans have called on the president to leave the nomination to his successor, who will be elected in November.
The death of Justice Scalia, a staunch conservative, left the nine-member Supreme Court evenly divided between conservatives and liberals.
