The Trump White House is responding to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg‘s several-day absence from the bench after successful cancer surgery by drafting a short list of nominees and alerting close lobbying allies to prepare for battle.
There is no indication Ginsburg is unable to work nor any indication she has any intention of retiring.
“The White House is reaching out to political allies and conservative activist groups to prepare for an ailing Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s possible death or departure from the Supreme Court — an event that would trigger the second bitter confirmation battle of President Donald Trump’s tenure,” Politico first reported.
“They’re doing it very quietly, of course,” a source told Politico, “because the idea is not to be opportunistic, but just to be prepared so we aren’t caught flat-footed.”
The White House “is taking the temperature on possible short-list candidates, reaching out to key stakeholders, and just making sure that people are informed on the process.”
For likely the first time in history, the Trump White House outsourced the sourcing, vetting, and lobbying for all its judicial nominees, including Supreme Court nominees, to far right wing groups like The Heritage Foundation and The Federalist Society.
Any attempt by the Trump administration to force the beloved progressive jurist out of her seat would be met with extreme opposition.
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Image by Wake Forest University School of Law via Flickr and a CC license