When President Donald Trump took office, he told supporters he planned to nominate four judges to the Supreme Court during his first term in office — a plan to would give conservatives a stronghold on the high court for generations.
To much fanfare, Trump has already made good on his “one judge a year” plan when Justice Neil Gorsuch was sworn in last year. This year, the plan is for Justice Anthony Kennedy to retire in early summer — which starts in just 99 days.
That’s according to Nevada Sen. Dean Heller, a Republican, who strongly implied that Kennedy will announce his retirement in a few months.
“I believe that we’re going to have another Supreme Court justice this year. I think that Kennedy is going to retire some time early summer,” Heller told Politico last Friday. “That being the case, Republicans are going to have another opportunity to put another Supreme Court justice in place, which I am hoping will get our base a little motivated.”
Of course, this isn’t the first time Kennedy has hinted he would retire under Trump so he can be replaced with a strong conservative.
But an announcement this year by Kennedy is just the thing conservatives have been hoping for.
Kennedy has been the crucial swing vote on the high court for more than a decade, and sided with the liberal justices on gay and abortion rights, as well as some the death penalty and the rights of suspects detained at Guantanamo Bay naval base.
His retirement would lockup the court with a decidedly conservative majority for decades.
Trump has also quietly floated the idea of replacing a physically ailing Ruth Bader Ginsberg, a liberal judge who he noted is increasingly frail. “What does she weigh? 60 pounds?” Trump reportedly asked advisers when sculpting a list of potential Supreme Court nominees.
Trump has also targeted Justice Sonia Sotomayor for potential replacement during his tenure, reportedly questioning her health because of her struggles with diabetes.
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Do you want Donald Trump to nominate three more Supreme Court justices?
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