Trump to announce SCOTUS pick Saturday, with Senate GOP expected to move ahead

President Donald Trump plans to announce his nominee to the Supreme Court on Saturday, and barring a monumental surprise, she will be on track for confirmation.

Trump had been telling audiences at campaign rallies that he would announce the selection at the end of the week, and in a Tuesday morning tweet he specified that it would come Saturday.

A statement by Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney seemed to end much of the suspense about whether a sufficient number of GOP senators would go along with Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s plan to assure a vote on Trump’s nominee before the end of the year.

“The Constitution gives the President the power to nominate and the Senate the authority to provide advice and consent on Supreme Court nominees. Accordingly, I intend to follow the Constitution and precedent in considering the President’s nominee,” Romney said. “If the nominee reaches the Senate floor, I intend to vote based upon their qualifications.”

After issuing his statement, Romney told reporters that he would consider a nominee on the merits, regardless of whether the vote happens before or after the election.