Biden vows to share court packing views — after the election

Democratic presidential candidate Joseph R. Biden pledged Thursday to come clean about his stance on packing the Supreme Court — after the election.

During a campaign swing through Arizona with running mate Sen. Kamala Harris, Mr. Biden said the focus should be on President Trump’s rush to fill an opening on the Supreme Court before the presidential inauguration.

“You will know my opinion on court-packing when the election is over,” Mr. Biden said in response to a question. “It is a great question and I don’t blame you for asking, but you know the moment I answer that question, the headline in every one of your papers will be about that.”

Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris have repeatedly refused to say whether they would pack the court if Mr. Trump’s nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, is confirmed as the replacement for the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

If she were confirmed by the Senate, the court would have a 6-3 conservative majority.

Vice President Mike Pence pushed Ms. Harris on the issue in their only debate Wednesday night, and he picked up where he left off during a campaign stop of his own Thursday in Arizona.

He said the Democratic ticket can’t hide that it backs the liberal push to increase the Supreme Court to 15 justices.

“If you didn’t figure it out last night, I will tip you off —- they want to pack the Supreme Court,” Mr. Pence told supporters in Peoria.

Mr. Biden said Mr. Trump’s push to fill the seat is a more pressing issue.

“There has never been a court appointment once an election has begun,” Mr. Biden said. “They are denying the American people the one shot they have under constitutional law to be able to have their input.”

Steve Guest, rapid response director for the Republican National Committee, said: “The American people deserve a straight answer from Joe Biden about packing the court, not this malarkey.”

The Arizona visit from Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris marked their first joint appearance in the state and underscored their push to put the state in the Democratic column for the first time since 1992.

“Too many Arizonans are facing hard times right now,” Mr. Biden said. “They are trying their best, but it never feels like it is enough. They are not looking out for a handout, they just want a fair shot.

“You’re facing real challenges right now, and the last thing you need is a president that exacerbates them, who ignores you, and … a president who looks down on us,” he said.

Mr. Pence was making his fourth visit to Arizona, according to local reports.

Mr. Pence said a Biden win would open the door to higher taxes, a weaker border with Mexico and socialized medicine.

“We are 26 days away from another great victory for the American people, and the road to victory runs right through Arizona,” he said after being introduced by second lady Karen Pence.

The dueling visits come as Mr. Trump recovers from the coronavirus, which has become a top issue for voters, including in Arizona.

The University of Virginia Center for Politics released new state-by-state rankings Thursday that moved Arizona from a “toss-up” state in the presidential race to “leans Democrat.”

“[Mr. Biden’s] path to victory in the state almost certainly involves flipping Maricopa County (Phoenix) from red to blue,” Kyle Kodkin and J. Miles Coleman said in the breakdown. “Maricopa, which casts about 60% of the state’s votes, was one of only a handful of the nation’s most populous counties to back Trump in 2016, but it seems primed to shift to Biden.”

They said a recent survey from OH Predictive Insights showing Mr. Trump leading Mr. Biden by a single point in Arizona’s 6th Congressional District is a bad sign for the incumbent.

Mr. Trump won the 6th Congressional District by 10 points in 2016 after 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney carried the district by 21 points.

“This kind of erosion threatens the GOP’s statewide margin,” they said.