Moran Faces Conservative Backlash Over Court

Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) “faced a barrage of criticism from conservative groups on Friday after he broke with his party’s leadership by saying he favored holding hearings on President Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court,” the New York Times reports.

“A founder of the Tea Party Patriots, Jenny Beth Martin, threatened to encourage a primary challenge against Mr. Moran, saying that grass-roots conservatives were ‘furious’ with his stance. The reaction from that group and others made it clear that they will tolerate no concessions in the court battle, even as Democrats characterize Republicans’ actions as an unprecedented dereliction of their constitutional obligation.”

Yet Moran did not back down: “I would rather have you complaining to me that I voted wrong on nominating somebody than saying I’m not doing my job.”