AOC is 'inclined to say yes,' Justice Stephen Breyer should retire from top court

When questioned about whether she believes 82-year-old Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer should retire from the nation's high court following this term to allow Democrats to appoint a replacement, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said that she is "inclined to say yes."

CNN's Dana Bash noted that Democratic Rep. Mondaire Jones of New York believes Breyer should step down so Democrats can fill the slot, and the anchor asked Ocasio-Cortez whether she thought that Breyer should step down at the conclusion of this term.

Ocasio-Cortez said that she thinks "Jones has a point. And we have had very difficult experiences with making, I believe, the opposite mistake. And especially if Senate Democrats are not going to pass reforms on HR 1, we cannot rely solely on a wish of winning elections, particularly in the Senate, when voting rights are under attack ... across the country. And if we're not going to pass HR 1 with the preemptive clauses that can roll some of that voter suppression attacks back, yeah, I believe that we should protect our Supreme Court," she said, noting it "should absolutely be a consideration."

When Bash pressed for clarity whether the New York congresswoman's opinion is that Breyer should step down after the term, Ocasio-Cortez said that she "would probably lean towards yes" and that she is "inclined to say yes."

Following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg last year, then President Trump appointed Amy Coney Barrett to fill the vacancy created upon the death of the liberal icon. Barrett became the third Trump-appointee confirmed to serve on the Supreme Court.