U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03) issued the following statement after President Obama announced his nominee to serve on the United States Supreme Court:

“While President Obama has the right to nominate an individual for appointment to the Supreme Court, his Constitutional authority ends there. The Senate has the exclusive right to confirm, reject, or simply not take up the nomination. While the House does not have a role in this process, I, for one, do not believe the Senate should take up this nomination until the American people have had the opportunity to elect the next president.”