Donald Trump has released his list of potential picks for Supreme Court justice that he would nominate if he’s elected president. But there’s one name on the list that’s definitely standing out: Texas Supreme Court judge, Justice Don Willett.
Justice Don Willett is not a big fan of Donald Trump. In fact, as Salon reports, Willett has been trolling Donald Trump on Twitter.
“With malice toward none, with charity for all… except for all the losers, clowns, and dummies.” —President Donald Lincoln
— Justice Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) August 7, 2015
“We’ll rebuild the Death Star. It’ll be amazing, believe me. And the rebels will pay for it.” —Darth Trump pic.twitter.com/y25LADg15J
— Justice Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) April 8, 2016
Donald Trump haiku—
Who would the Donald Name to #SCOTUS ? The mind reels. *weeps—can’t finish tweet* pic.twitter.com/a326AP0mN1
— Justice Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) June 16, 2015
That time Donald Trump tried to give Kanye my cell number. pic.twitter.com/E5IgQguOOv
— Justice Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) July 22, 2015
According to Dallas News , Justice Don Willett was named the “Tweeter Laureate of Texas” in 2015.
“I’m the most avid judicial tweeter in America, which is like being the tallest Munchkin in Oz,” said Willett, aka @JusticeWillett.
Justice Willett has over 39,000 followers on Twitter. Business Insider reports that he has been making fun of Donald Trump for years now. Other than being an avid fan of the social media platform, Justice Willett is a well-known conservative justice. He’s often expressed his fondness for Twitter in interviews.
“I think people just find it remarkable that a high court justice would step out from behind the bench and have a persona that’s not the traditional, stodgy, fuddy-duddy persona, but actually comes across as authentic and engaging,” he said in an interview with Law360.
Donald Trump’s list of potential Supreme Court nominees is making headlines for other reasons as well. Politico reports that the list excludes certain key conservative justices who are legal luminaries in their own right. According to Politico , Sixth Circuit Judge Jeffrey Sutton, D.C. Circuit Judge Brett Kavanaugh, and former Solicitor General Paul Clement are some notable snubs.
“The missing names… are even more interesting than the names on the list,” said Harvard Law Professor Laurence Tribe to Politico.
The article on Politico posits that Donald Trump’s suggestions could have more to do with satisfying the nervous conservatives in the Republican party who fear his dominant populist leanings.
“They’re fairly notable people but more for their active politics than maybe their jurisprudence,” said Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond law professor who specializes in judicial nominations.
“They may be good, competent people but I don’t see any of them as the next Nino,” Tobias added, referencing the late Justice Antonin Scalia’s nickname. “Maybe that’s just asking too much.”
The Washington Journal notes that the list from the Trump camp is largely “meaningless” as there is no guarantee that “The Donald” will pick a name from this list if he becomes president. Even the press release says that the list is just a “guide.”
“The following list of potential Supreme Court justices is representative of the kind of constitutional principles I value and, as President, I plan to use this list as a guide to nominate our next United States Supreme Court Justices,” the press release reads.
According to CNN , this is the full list of names of Donald Trump’s potential Supreme Court picks : Steven Colloton of Iowa, Allison Eid of Colorado, Raymond Gruender of Missouri, Thomas Hardiman of Pennsylvania, Raymond Kethledge of Michigan, Joan Larsen of Michigan, Thomas Lee of Utah, William Pryor of Alabama, David Stras of Minnesota, Diane Sykes of Wisconsin, and Don Willett of Texas.
[Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images]
