Not all the Republican candidates. Trump said that he'd nominate someone if he were in Obama's position, and it's up to the Senate to delay confirmation. Bush said that Obama should nominate someone that the Senate would approve.Read the news, then report back. Pretty sure all the Repub candidates, the Speaker of the House and the Head of the Judicial Committee all suggested or demanded it.I don't think anyone is saying that Obama shouldn't nominate someone.All of what you stated means nothing. This process takes around three months to complete and has taken that amount of time for the last dozen or so nominations. The President has the duty and responsibility to nominate someone for the Supreme Court per his stated job in the Constittution. Whatever numbers and "facts" that may be presented offer little else than just being simple numbers. Let the man get buried before all this hoopla begins but even the most extreme Tea Party person cannot deny that the nomination should occur. Anyone who says it shouldn't needs some warm milk and a nap after they throw their hissy fit."This situation" means a vacancy occurring in the Supreme Court during an election year in a divided government, where the Presidential nomination and the Senate appointment both have to take place in the election year. And by divided government I mean a President in one party and the Senate in another party. We wouldn't be having an issue if the Senate was Democrat controlled. This situation hasn't happened since 1880. Grassley has screwed this up, as has Cruz and Rubio. I'm not sure where their "80" number comes from. Maybe they were prepped right before the debate and told 1880 and flubbed it by saying "the last 80 years" during the heat of the moment.
I think it was only Cruz or Rubio (or maybe both) who said that the President should defer nomination to his successor.
Fortas for Chief Justice.-QG