WILMINGTON, Del. – In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, published an op-ed on FoxNews.com urging his Republican colleagues to delay consideration of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to protect our institutions and to allow the Senate to focus on delivering COVID-19 relief to the American people.

FoxNews.com: Don’t fill Supreme Court seat left vacant by Ginsburg until 2021 – protect our institutions

By Chris Coons

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a towering figure in America’s long march toward greater justice. The impact of her lifelong fight for gender equality will be felt for generations, and I continue to pray for her loved ones and mourn her loss.

Justice Ginsburg’s passing has come at a particularly difficult moment for our nation. More than 200,000 Americans have lost their lives to COVID-19, and more than seven million have been infected. Small businesses across the country are fighting to keep their doors open, and individuals from coast to coast are struggling to pay rent and keep food on the table for their families. Americans in every state are in desperate need of relief, and in Congress it’s a critical part of our job to help our constituents navigate this crisis.

We’ve had months to negotiate a relief bill, but the Senate has failed to act. Instead of debating how to provide assistance to those who are suffering the consequences of this pandemic, the Senate appears set to focus on filling Justice Ginsburg’s seat in what may be a deeply damaging and partisan fight.

Just before she died, Justice Ginsburg made clear that her most fervent wish was that her successor be chosen after the next presidential inauguration, when President Trump will be sworn in for a second term or former Vice President Biden will be sworn in as our next president. This wish wasn’t personal or partisan – it was principled – and every American, Republican and Democrat, should consider why Justice Ginsburg made this her dying wish: to protect the legitimacy of the Supreme Court and the rule of law in this country for all of us.

To read the full column, click here.

###