Trump updates list of prospective Supreme Court judges

The White House announced Friday that President Trump has added five judges to his running list of possible Supreme Court nominees, touting Trump’s successful nomination of conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch to the bench.

The updated list of 25 judges includes Judge Amy Coney Barrett from the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, a former clerk for the late Justice Antonin Scalia.

Barrett, a vocal opponent of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision who has referred to it as an “erroneous decision,” was confirmed to her post by the Senate in October. 

Trump also added Judge Brett Kavanaugh of the appeals court for the District of Columbia, the nation’s second most powerful court, who clerked for Justice Anthony Kennedy.

Kavanaugh has been rumored before as a possible Republican nominee for the high court. 

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The list includes two state Supreme Court justices: Britt Grant of Georgia and Patrick Wyrick of Oklahoma. Grant previously clerked for Kavanaugh at the D.C. Appeals Court.

Former Alabama Solicitor General Kevin Newsom is another recently confirmed judge on the list. He currently serves as the judge for the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. 

Carrie Severino, chief counsel and policy director for the conservative Judicial Crisis Network, was quick to praise Trump for the additions, calling the candidates the “best and brightest judges in the nation.”

“These men and women have spent years in the trenches of state and federal government fighting for the Constitution and the rule of law,” she said.

“They represent a diverse range of backgrounds, including both state and federal judges, three who were former state solicitors general with first-hand experience protecting our constitutional balance of powers,” she said.

The Judicial Crisis Network spent $10 million on an ad campaign to get Trump’s first Supreme Court appointee, Gorsuch, confirmed to the bench.

Trump’s update of the list comes after Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R) said Friday that she would vote for Senate candidate and former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore (R) despite the sexual assault allegations against him, saying that he would help appoint Supreme Court justices.

The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.