Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., assured reporters Monday a House bill seeking to provide bodyguards for Supreme Court justices and clerks would not pass the upper chamber, The Hill reported.
The statement comes after a bill only protecting the high court’s justices forwarded by Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Chris Coons, D-Del., passed the Senate unanimously May 9.
“The version of the Supreme Court security bill that apparently they’re going to try to pass on suspension tonight is not going to pass the Senate,” McConnell said.
“The security issue is related to Supreme Court justices, not nameless staff that no one knows,” he added.
Senate Republicans have increased pressure on the House to pass legislation to protect Supreme Court justices after a man was charged with attempted murder for allegedly planning to kill Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
The 26-year-old, Nicholas John Roske, was armed with a pistol and tactical knife. Investigators also claim he told them the possibility of the Supreme Court overruling Roe v. Wade was a reason for his decision, according to NBC News.
A month before the incident, Cornyn and Coons’ Supreme Court Police Parity Act passed the Senate in response to prior threats against Supreme Court justices in the wake of the Dobbs v. Jackson draft majority opinion leak.
“Threats to the physical safety of Supreme Court Justices and their families are disgraceful, and attempts to intimidate and influence the independence of our judiciary cannot be tolerated,” Cornyn wrote in a statement.
“I’m glad the Senate quickly approved this measure to extend Supreme Court police protection to family members, and the House must take up and pass it immediately.”
Via Newsmax
