What we know about the Supreme Court’s new term and Trump’s power
The Supreme Court’s new term will define the scope of President Donald Trump’s power. Here’s what we know:
- President Donald Trump said in an interview on FOX Business that he has a list of potential candidates for the Supreme Court if a vacancy occurs.
- President Trump noted that the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 2020 allowed him to appoint a replacement and make the high court more conservative.
- In the interview, he mentioned the positions of the two oldest justices, Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas.
- President Trump has indicated that he may nominate two or three more judges as needed during his second term in office.
As Justice Samuel Alito’s possible retirement looms, President Donald Trump noted in a television interview how Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death in 2020 tipped the balance of the Supreme Court in his favor.
President Trump told Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo that he had a list of potential candidates in mind to replace Alito and maintain the high court’s 6-3 conservative majority, but he did not mention specific names.
In a wide-ranging 35-minute interview that aired on April 15, the president was asked about the future of the two oldest justices on the Supreme Court, Mr. Alito, 76, and Justice Clarence Thomas, 77.
President Trump says he may make multiple SCOTUS appointments before the end of his second term
President Trump said he did not know if there would be any changes on the high court, but noted that Ginsburg, the oldest justice at the time, had made the decision to continue serving until her late 80s after repeated bouts with cancer, leaving room for Trump to succeed her in the event of her death.
President Trump pointed out that the average term of office for a judge is approximately 40 years, and said, “There is a theory that once a judge reaches a certain age, they will give up their seat if it is the president they support.” “But she decided to live forever.”
Ginsburg was America’s preeminent litigator for women’s rights and was considered the leader of the high court’s liberal wing, serving as a bulwark against an increasingly conservative majority until her death in September 2020.
Her death was announced well before Trump lost the general election to Joe Biden, who believed the decision should be made by the next president. Mr. Trump replaced Ms. Ginsburg with Amy Coney Barrett. Prior to Coney Barrett, Trump nominated Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh to the high court during his first term in office.
Bartiromo asked Trump again in an April 15 interview, saying, “So I guess we don’t know if we’re going to move forward with the next nomination.”
While praising Alito as an “excellent judge” who is “in very good health,” Trump went on to say he could nominate a fourth or more justices to the Supreme Court if necessary.
“Theoretically, it’s two or three. Just look at the statistics and you’ll see,” Trump said. “It could be two, it could be three, it could be one. I don’t know. I’m ready to do that.”
