Our conscience must be awakened. We know it's there. Mitch McConnell denies President Obama a hearing for his nomination of a Supreme Court replacement for Judge Antonin Scalia in February 2016, eleven months before the inauguration of a new President. Now he wants to approve someone 6 weeks before the November 2020 election, ignoring his self-righteous rule . Our conscience usually reminds us to do the right thing, weigh right and wrong, act in the spirit of Justice & Fairness. Almost all of the Republicans have reversed what they said concerning Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland in 2016, saying YES they will hear President Trump submit his nominee 6 weeks before the 2020 election. Here's what some of them said back in early 2016 though: Joni Ernst of Iowa: when opposing a vote for Obama's nominee before the 2016 November election said: “In the midst of a critical election, the American people deserve to have a say in this important decision that will impact the course of our country for years to come.” Thom Tillis of North Carolina: In 2016, Tillis argued against considering Obama's nominee: "We are in the middle of a presidential election, and the Senate majority is giving the American people a voice to determine the direction of the Supreme Court [once a new President is elected]." Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., in 2016: said “Let the American people have a voice in the composition of the Supreme Court. Instead of a lame duck president and Senate nominating and confirming, a new president and Senate – elected by the people only a few months from now – should make that important decision. ... In the politicized atmosphere of an election year, you probably shouldn't even nominate someone. ... It's not fair to the nominee, it's not fair to the court."
Barack Obama himself stated the following on September 18, 2020, after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death at age 87:
'A basic principle of the law — and of everyday fairness — is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on what’s convenient or advantageous in the moment. The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle. As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard.'