On Wednesday, Justice Anthony Kennedy formally announced his retirement from the United States Supreme Court, and there are reports that White House Counsel Don McGahn might resign from his position following Kennedy’s retirement, CNN reports. As the Trump administration goes into overdrive trying to replace the recent Supreme Court Justice vacancy (and potential WH Counsel seat), there are a few potential candidates who might fill Kennedy’s spot.
CNBC notes that President Donald Trump and an on slot of Republican and Democratic WH senators have apparently met with approximately a dozen candidates for Kennedy’s position. Though it might seem improbable to predict which candidates Trump and his team might be priming for the open Justice position, Trump has had a running list of potential Supreme Court Justices since Nov. 2017, according to Vox.
The exhaustive list contains 25 Justice candidates, but here are a few that we think might be Trump’s front-runners:
1. Don Willett
Don Willett, who served as a prior Supreme Court of Texas, has previously tweeted some controversial content about transgender people and other members of the LGBTQ+ community, according to Dallas News.
Though we hope someone who is so allegedly against gay marriage and has vehemently proposed anti-LGBTQ+ legislature in the past hasn’t made it into Trump’s top even-shorter candidate pool, the Trump admin could select Willett based on his experience as a former experience in the Supreme Court.
Plus, Willett shares some preexisting commonalities with Trump and his admin—such as his pro-gun and pro-life stances, Ballotpedia adds.
2. Amy Coney Barrett
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According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, Indianan Federal Judge Amy Coney Barrett has previously rebutted reproductive legislature, particularly Roe vs. Wade. Based on her pro-life leaning, Trump and his admin could push her forward in their selection process, especially since the Indianapolis Business Journal adds that Trump might pick her in order to subtly gain the support of women.
3. Amul Thapar
Kentucky Federal Appeals court Judge Amul Thapar is a conservative-leaning judge, who has a lifelong goal to become a Supreme Court justice, according to the Courier-Journal.
One of Thapar’s more notable federal cases involved a legal battle between a person with a disability and his former employer, Ballotpedia adds. (TL;DR: Thapar decided in favor of the company, which allegedly didn’t adhere to the individual’s request for reasonable accommodation.)
4. Britt Grant
AJC reports that the Georgia Supreme Court Justice, Britt Grant, is a potent conservative candidate, who obviously aligns with Trump’s ideology. Thankfully, it doesn’t appear that the Standford Law School graduate has ruled in favor of any potentially problematic legislature.
5. Charles Canady
Politico notes that the Supreme Court of Florida graduated from Yale Law School. Previously, Canady has committed to three terms in the Florida House of Representatives, the Florida Supreme Court notes.
Regardless, these five front-runners are basically glorified political fan-theoried candidates, seeing as the Trump administration has a deep pool of 25 other candidates to sort through before Kennedy's official retirement and the appointment process can begin in earnest.
