Donald Trump Tries to Woo Conservatives with His Supreme Court Nominees
Donald Trump has released a list of potential Supreme Court nominees. Both left-wing magazine Mother Jones and centrist newspaper The Economist concur that the former reality TV star’s list of possible Supreme Court justices is designed to make the controversial candidate more appealing to conservative voters, especially conservative leadership. According to NBC News, Trump’s list of potential Supreme Court nominees “seems designed to placate his conservative critics.”
“It is a safe list. All are sitting judges nominated by Republicans, some on federal and some on state courts. All appear to be white; seven are men, and four are women. And all 11 are listed as experts on website of the conservative Federalist Society, a key legal arbiter for the right.”
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One reason this election has been so important is because whoever is elected president in November is likely to nominate at least one Supreme Court justice, and could nominate more. CBS News predicted that the 45th president of the United States of America could change the tone of the Supreme Court for years to come because “the Supreme Court may face as many as four vacancies as some of the justices age or enter retirement.”
- Steven M. Colloton, federal appeals court judge
- Allison H. Eid, Colorado state supreme court justice
- Raymond W. Gruender, federal appeals court judge
- Thomas M. Hardiman, federal appeals court judge
- Raymond M. Kethledge, federal appeals court judge
- Joan L. Larsen, Michigan state supreme court justice
- Thomas Rex Lee, Utah state supreme court justice
- William H. Pryor, Jr. federal appeals court judge
- David R. Stras, Minnesota state supreme court justice
- Dianne S. Sykes, federal appeals court judge
- Don R. Willett, Texas state supreme court
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Frederick Clarkson, a senior fellow at the Massachusetts-based Political Research Associates, suggested that supported the twice-divorced Trump, who has bragged of his adultery, “may be a bridge too far for some” leaders of the Christian right, according to the website Truth-Out. This list of possible judges may be an attempt by Donald Trump to attract the support of the ultra-right wing branch of the Republican Party.
The New York Times quoted Nan Aron, president of the Alliance for Justice Action Council, as calling Trump’s list as “dangerous” to civil rights.
“The list includes some of the most extreme conservatives on the federal bench today. Their opinions demonstrate open hostility to Americans’ rights and liberties, including reproductive justice and environmental, consumer and worker protections. They have ruled consistently in favor of the powerful over everyone else. They would move the needle even further to the right on the Supreme Court.”
Donald Trump leads in one new poll. Panicking yet? You should be. https://t.co/rLahcqqm4g pic.twitter.com/NbIfEtpTbb
— Slate (@Slate) May 20, 2016
Mother Jones pointed out that Donald Trump’s list of potential Supreme Court nominees “seem clearly chosen to try to shore up his standing with religious conservatives who care deeply about the high court and are suspicious of a nominee who once praised Planned Parenthood. It’s unclear whether simply promising to pick an anti-reproductive-freedom Supreme Court justice will be enough to persuade evangelicals to ignore his history as a playboy New Yorker with an utter lack of familiarity with the Bible.”
The Economist mentioned Donald Trump’s history of changing his mind on important issues and how this worries many conservatives.
“The uncertainty about what Mr. Trump really believes about the big issues of the day has made conservatives a bit nauseous, particularly when it comes to the Supreme Court. With Justice Antonin Scalia’s seat empty, and GOP leaders in the Senate promising to let Barack Obama’s successor fill the void, Republicans have openly fretted about who Mr. Trump might choose for the job should he win the White House.”
Some conservatives have pointed out that Donald Trump’s list of proposed Supreme Court justices is only a guideline, and given Trump’s history of changing his mind, there is no guarantee that he will actually select any of the judges he has proposed. Ed Whelan, a former clerk to the late Antonin Scalia (whose seat has not yet been filled, three months after his death), praised the names on the list but was dubious as to whether Trump would actually nominate them.
“It’s a good list of some of the outstanding judges who give ample sign of being faithful to the Constitution. Whether a President Trump could actually be counted on to pick folks like this is a different question.”
Blogger Erick Erickson was more to the point.
“Like every clause of every sentence uttered in every breath Donald Trump takes, this is all subject to change. He will waffle, he will backtrack, and he simply cannot be believed.”
One of the men on Donald Trump’s list of potential Supreme Court nominations, Justice Don Willett of the Texas State Supreme Court, wrote a haiku last year about the possibility of President Trump naming one or more Supreme Court justices.
Donald Trump haiku—
Who would the Donald
Name to #SCOTUS? The mind reels.
*weeps—can't finish tweet* pic.twitter.com/a326AP0mN1— Judge Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) June 16, 2015
What’s your opinion? Has Donald Trump suggested these people because he honestly believes they will be an asset to the Supreme Court, or is he just trying to gain the support of conservative voters?
[Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images]
