President Trump on Wednesday defended his decision to seek the appointment of a Supreme Court justice in the short time before the Nov. 3 election, saying that he expects this year's election results to end up before the high court.
"I think this [the election] will end up in the Supreme Court, and I think it's very important that we have nine justices," Trump said.
"I think it's better if you go before the election, because I think this scam that the Democrats are pulling — it's a scam — the scam will be before the United States Supreme Court," Trump said, alluding to his unsubstantiated arguments about fraudulent mail-in ballots.
Trump's comments come a day after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell rounded up the votes needed to advance Trump's nominee, who is expected to be named on Saturday. The nominee would replace Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died on Friday.
The president has suggested that he might not accept the election results if he is not declared the winner. Trump had previously suggested the same in 2016, citing then that he predicted the election would be "rigged." He eventually captured the White House despite losing the popular vote by some 3 million ballots.
Asked for comment on the indictment of a police officer for wanton endangerment for shooting into neighboring apartments during the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor, Trump instead referenced his record on issues important to Black Americans and said he didn't know enough about the decision to comment.
"I don't know enough about it. I heard a decision was just made," Trump said. "After I see what the decision is, I will have a comment on it."
None of the three officers involved was charged for killing Taylor six months ago in an incident that highlighted ongoing tensions between Black Americans and U.S. police forces.
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