President Donald J. Trump stated today that on July 9th he will announce his Supreme Court nominee to replace the retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy.
Justice Kennedy sent shockwaves through the political world on Tuesday this week after he announced his decision to step down from the highest court in the land later this summer. For President Trump’s part, he has remarked this week that he will be choosing his replacement from the same list, compiled mostly by the Heritage Foundation, that he plucked the conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch from.
Justice Kennedy has long been seen as a “moderate” voice on the Court, despite being appointed by President Ronald Reagan. It is expected that President Trump’s new nominee will bring a decidedly more conservative view of the United States Constitution than Justice Kennedy. This, not surprisingly, has liberals concerned that the commander-in-chief will appoint a pro-life justice who will swing the court solidly to the right and potentially overturn Roe v. Wade should the issue of abortion come before the court again.
According to CBS News, President Trump has stated that he might meet with several of the potential nominees this weekend at his golf course in Bedminster, NJ. Of those in the running, “7th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Amy Coney Barrett; 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Thomas Hardiman, who was the runner-up to Neil Gorsuch on the president's first Supreme Court pick; D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Brett Kavanaugh; and 6th Circuit Court of Appeals' Judges Raymond Kethledge and Amul Thapar” are names that have the most credence to actually being picked.
Despite speculation that he will pick a judge based on their stance on abortion, the president said "it was inappropriate to discuss whether he was looking for a justice who would be willing to overturn Roe v. Wade."
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