Is Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) ditching the U.S. Senate for the Supreme Court?
According to President Donald Trump, it could happen, and he has the votes to make it a reality.
On Monday, President Trump was asked whether Cruz belonged on the Supreme Court.
Trump stated, “In fact, somebody said, ‘Would you ever appoint him to the United States Supreme Court, because he’s a brilliant lawyer, Ted?’ I said, “Well, he’s the only one I can think of that’s gonna get 100 votes. All Republicans will vote for him. All Democrats will vote for him, because they want to get him the hell out of the Senate!’ If I was having a hard time with getting the votes I would appoint Ted Cruz, I’d get 100%. Guaranteed.”
Donald Trump: If I appointed Ted Cruz to the Supreme Court, he'd get 100 votes.
"He's the ONLY ONE I can think of that's gonna get 100 votes."
"ALL Republicans will vote for him. ALL Democrats will vote for him, because they want to get him the hell out of the Senate!" pic.twitter.com/Y8hvrzp3LS
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) July 6, 2026
This is the second time this year that Trump has insisted Cruz would be a good fit for the nation’s highest court.
In January, Trump praised Cruz during a speech promoting his administration’s new Trump Account initiative at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium in Washington. Trump called the Texas Republican “a brilliant legal mind” and “a brilliant man” before joking that he should join the Supreme Court next.
And, like yesterday’s speech, Trump insisted he’d have the votes.
“If I nominate Ted Cruz for the United States Supreme Court, I will get 100 percent of the vote,” Trump said, according to Newsweek.
“The Democrats will vote for him because they want to get him the hell out [of the U.S. Senate]. And the Republicans will vote for him because they want to get him the hell out, too.”
Trump: If I nominate Ted Cruz for the Supreme Court, the Democrats will vote for him because they want to get him the hell out. And the Republicans will vote for him because they want to get him the hell out, too pic.twitter.com/EAVbvDyHHo
— Acyn (@Acyn) January 28, 2026
However, despite Trump’s multiple endorsements and “nominations,” Cruz has repeatedly resisted the idea that he could be nominated to the Supreme Court.
“A principled federal judge stays out of policy fights and stays out of political fights,” Cruz said.
Cruz said he has no interest in staying out of political battles.
“I want to be right in the middle of them,” he said, although he also noted that being considered for the Supreme Court is “a high honor.”
New: @tedcruz responds to @realDonaldTrump indication that he could nominate Sen. Cruz for SCOTUS: “And so my answer, and the President knows this, I've told him this in the Oval Office, my answer is not only no, but hell no.” pic.twitter.com/xOaeqLIQXA
— Mary Elise O’Bar (@MaryEliseOBar) January 28, 2026
Even if Trump wanted to nominate Cruz, there would need to be a vacancy on the Supreme Court.
Justices serve lifetime appointments, and there is no indication that any of the current nine justices plan to leave their posts soon.
The longest-serving member is conservative judge Clarence Thomas, aged 77, who was appointed in 1991, followed by conservative Samuel Alito, age 75, and liberal Sonia Sotomayor, age 71.
Cruz is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School, where he served as an editor of the Harvard Law Review. After law school, he clerked for Chief Justice William Rehnquist on the U.S. Supreme Court in 1996-1997 before later entering politics.