Joe Biden says voters 'don't deserve' to know his position on packing the Supreme Court with additional justices before the election - and insists he will not ban fracking
Joe Biden once again refused to reveal his stance on packing the Supreme Court, saying voters 'don't deserve' to know his position ahead of the November election.
The Democratic nominee reiterated his stance during an interview on Friday in Las Vegas, Nevada, while taking questions from the media.
Biden refused to reveal his thoughts the day prior while in Arizona, stating it would only grab headlines and take focus away from the Trump administration's effort to confirm nominee Amy Coney Barrett.
KTNV reporter Ross DiMattei approached Biden and confessed that viewers were anxious to know if he supported expanding the Supreme Court to more than nine judges.
Joe Biden told a reporter in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Friday that voters 'don't deserve' to know his opinion on court packing
Biden is asked if voters deserve to know if he will pack the Supreme Court.
— America Rising Squared (@ARSquared) October 10, 2020
Biden: No. pic.twitter.com/5xsujoDudS
Biden is asked if voters deserve to know if he will pack the Supreme Court.
Biden: No. pic.twitter.com/5xsujoDudS
'This is the number one thing that I've been asked about from viewers in the last couple of days,' said DiMattei.
'Well, you've been asked by the viewers who are probably Republicans,' Biden responded.
'Don't the voters deserve to know where you stand on -' DiMattei started, but was cut off by Biden mid-question.
'No, they don't deserve,' Biden said, before he appeared to shift attention to President Trump and his administration.
'I'm not gonna play his game, he'd love me to talk about, and I've already said something on court packing, he'd love that to be the discussion instead of what he's doing now.
Biden had previously refused to answer the question on Thursday, saying it would only create headlines and steer attention away from the Trump administration
'He's about to make a pick in the middle of an election, first time it's ever been done, first time in history it's ever been done.
Meanwhile, Biden appeared at a campaign event on Saturday in Erie, Pennsylvania, delivering a 30-minute speech hitting President Donald Trump on the economy.
'Anyone who actually does an honest day´s work sees him and his promises for what they are,' Biden said at a training facility for plumbers and other tradespeople.
'The president can only see the world from Park Avenue. I see it from Scranton,' he said.
The president has argued that Biden´s tax and energy policies would cripple industrial state economies, especially energy-producing states like Pennsylvania. He has accused Biden of plans to ban fracking, although Biden has proposed only barring new leases on federal land, a fraction of U.S. fracking operations.
'No matter how many lies he tells, I am not, not, not banning fracking,' Biden said. 'Period.'
But as Biden tried to put the spotlight on economic issues, questions about the future of the Supreme Court continued to loom large ahead of the election.
Following the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in September, the Trump administration immediately signaled its intention to nominate and confirm a new Supreme Court Justice by the November election.
This outraged Democrats and a very slight number of Republicans who decried the quick turnaround. They argued that the next president - whether Trump is re-elected or Biden wins - should ultimately make the decision.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine was the first Republican to dissent from her colleagues.
Collins wrote in a statement: 'In order for the American people to have faith in their elected officials, we must act fairly and consistently - no matter which political party is in power.
'In fairness to the American people, who will either be re-electing the President or selecting a new one, the decision of a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court should be made by the President who is elected on November 3rd.'
Joe Biden and other Democrats have criticized President Trump for making a desperate rush to confirm Amy Coney Barrett for Supreme Court
After the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg , President Trump nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett for the vacant seat
The notion of court packing has increasingly gained traction among some Democratic lawmakers in response to Republican's rejection of Merrick Garland, a President Obama-era nominee.
Obama nominated Garland for Supreme Court after the death of Antonin Scalia in 2016, but Republicans gave considerable push back and claimed that 237 days before an election was not enough time.
Before he departed from Las Vegas on Friday, Biden answered questions about his view of court packing by criticizing conservatives' current efforts with Barrett.
'Look, the only court packing is going on right now,' said Biden.
'It's going on with the Republicans packing the court now. It's not constitutional what they're doing. We should be focused on what's happening right now.
'And the fact is that the only packing going on is this court is being packed now by the Republicans after the vote has already begun. I'm going to stay focused on it so we don't take our eyes off the ball here.'
Biden : 'It's going on with the Republicans packing the court now. It's not constitutional what they're doing. We should be focused on what's happening right now'
When asked about the revelation that Trump, who was infected with COVID-19 last week, would hold more campaign rallies, Biden urged the president to follow health guidelines.
'I think it's important that he make it clear to all the people that they should be socially distanced, they can be on the lawn, that's fine.
'But in fact, they should be socially distanced and wearing masks. That's the only responsible thing to do.'
Biden suggested the president confirm that he's not infected, and the former vice president added that he underwent a COVID test that morning, His results were negative.
Trump announced on Saturday that he would host two more rallies next week in Pennsylvania and Iowa.