by Penka Arsova
LaCorte News
The Washington Post fact-checked Sen. Kamala Harris’ (D-CA) story about Abraham Lincoln’s stance on nominating a Supreme Court candidate close to a presidential election and determined she was off base.
What she said: During the vice presidential debate with Vice President Mike Pence, Harris mentioned that Lincoln had the chance to pick a Supreme Court nominee before the presidential election. She argued that he chose not to because it was too close to the election.
“In 1864 … Abraham Lincoln was up for reelection. And it was 27 days before the election. And a seat became open on the United States Supreme Court. Abraham Lincoln’s party was in charge not only of the White House but the Senate. But Honest Abe said, ‘It’s not the right thing to do. The American people deserve to make the decision about who will be the next president of the United States, and then that person will be able to select who will serve on the highest court of the land,’” Harris said.