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Trump to Announce His Supreme Court Nominee Tonight

HeadlineJul 09, 2018

President Trump is slated to announce his nominee to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy tonight. The nomination is poised to cement the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, vastly reshaping the court for decades to come.

President Trump is reportedly considering four potential nominees. Judge Amy Coney Barrett is the favored nominee among the religious right. The New York Times reports she says she would like to see the scope of abortion rights changed. Barrett is a member of the obscure Catholic group People of Praise, which Vox reports requires members to “swear an oath of loyalty and give each other input on personal life decisions.” Judge Brett Kavanaugh is an appellate judge from Maryland who has ruled against Obamacare and abortion rights in the past. Last fall, he joined a panel of judges in issuing an order to prevent an undocumented immigrant teenager in U.S. detention from obtaining an abortion. That decision was later overturned. Raymond Kethledge is a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit who has been dubbed “Gorsuch 2.0.” He has ruled against voting rights. CBS also reports he is a staunch supporter of Second Amendment. Judge Thomas Hardiman is a U.S. appeals court judge that The Washington Post reports is a “Second Amendment extremist.” The Post reports that his placement on the court could lead to “a vast expansion in legal gun ownership” and that he been sympathetic to anti-abortion activists in past rulings. This is President Trump speaking to reporters Sunday.

President Donald Trump: “I’m getting very close to making a final decision. And I believe this person will do a great job. But I’m very close to making a decision. Have not made it official yet, obviously. Have not made it final. But we’re very close to making a decision.”

Reporter: “How many people are you deciding between now?”

President Donald Trump: “Well, it’s still—let’s say it’s the four people, but—and they’re excellent, every one. You can’t go wrong.”

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