For better or worse, Trump seems like he is going to nominate a Supreme Court justice this week. Amy Coney Barrett (the Notorious ACB?) seems like the clear frontrunner. Let me throw out three other names (and a dark horse) that could be called this week if ACB is not the choice.
1. Allison Eid. Currently a judge on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. She actually took Gorsuch's seat in 2017 when Gorsuch was elevated. She's a graduate of Stanford (B.A.) and U. Chicago (J.D.) who clerked for Clarence Thomas. Before the 10th Circuit, she spent 11+ years on the Colorado Supreme Court and was the Solicitor General of Colorado before that. She's currently 55 years old, which I believe is young enough for the position. Her appointment was approved 56-41 (nearly a party-line vote).
2. Barbara Lagoa. Currently a judge on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. She's a graduate of Florida Int'l (B.A.) and Columbia (J.D.). No clerkships listed on Wikipedia. Before joining the 11th Circuit, she was a justice on the Florida Supreme Court for just under a year, a judge on the Florida Court of Appeals for a week (!!), and a Florida trial judge for nearly 13 years. Going from state court trial judge to SCOTUS justice in 20 months seems like a rise too meteoric to consider. But she checks all the demographic boxes, and her nomination would play well in Florida, an obviously critical state in the election. She's 52, which makes her young enough.
3. Joan Larsen. Currently a judge on the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. She's a graduate of Northern Iowa (B.A.) and Northwestern (J.D.) Former clerk to David Sentelle on the D.C. Circuit and Antonin Scalia. So her conservative bona fides are there. Was a justice on the Michigan Supreme Court before joining the 6th Circuit in 2017. She passed out of the Senate on a 60-38 vote.
4. Dark horse--James Ho. Trump has said he'll nominate a woman, but Ho could be a candidate if a couple of top choices decline, or things get choppy. Ho is currently on the Fifth Circuit, is a graduate of Stanford (B.A.) and U. Chicago (J.D.). Ho is a former clerk to Edith Jones on the 5th Circuit and Clarence Thomas, so his conservative bona fides are without question. (He has also quickly made a name for himself since joining the bench in 2018.) Before joining the bench, Ho was the Solicitor General of Texas and a partner at Gibson Dunn. He's 46 or 47 years old, so his age is a big plus. He was confirmed on essentially a party-line vote.
A couple of other names worth remembering are Bridget Bade (her academic qualifications are not in the same league as other candidates, so I think she's out); Britt Grant (too young, but a name to keep in mind in the future); and Allison Rushing (also too young now, but I'd put even money on her ending up on SCOTUS at some point).
It will be a fascinating week.
1. Allison Eid. Currently a judge on the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. She actually took Gorsuch's seat in 2017 when Gorsuch was elevated. She's a graduate of Stanford (B.A.) and U. Chicago (J.D.) who clerked for Clarence Thomas. Before the 10th Circuit, she spent 11+ years on the Colorado Supreme Court and was the Solicitor General of Colorado before that. She's currently 55 years old, which I believe is young enough for the position. Her appointment was approved 56-41 (nearly a party-line vote).
2. Barbara Lagoa. Currently a judge on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. She's a graduate of Florida Int'l (B.A.) and Columbia (J.D.). No clerkships listed on Wikipedia. Before joining the 11th Circuit, she was a justice on the Florida Supreme Court for just under a year, a judge on the Florida Court of Appeals for a week (!!), and a Florida trial judge for nearly 13 years. Going from state court trial judge to SCOTUS justice in 20 months seems like a rise too meteoric to consider. But she checks all the demographic boxes, and her nomination would play well in Florida, an obviously critical state in the election. She's 52, which makes her young enough.
3. Joan Larsen. Currently a judge on the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. She's a graduate of Northern Iowa (B.A.) and Northwestern (J.D.) Former clerk to David Sentelle on the D.C. Circuit and Antonin Scalia. So her conservative bona fides are there. Was a justice on the Michigan Supreme Court before joining the 6th Circuit in 2017. She passed out of the Senate on a 60-38 vote.
4. Dark horse--James Ho. Trump has said he'll nominate a woman, but Ho could be a candidate if a couple of top choices decline, or things get choppy. Ho is currently on the Fifth Circuit, is a graduate of Stanford (B.A.) and U. Chicago (J.D.). Ho is a former clerk to Edith Jones on the 5th Circuit and Clarence Thomas, so his conservative bona fides are without question. (He has also quickly made a name for himself since joining the bench in 2018.) Before joining the bench, Ho was the Solicitor General of Texas and a partner at Gibson Dunn. He's 46 or 47 years old, so his age is a big plus. He was confirmed on essentially a party-line vote.
A couple of other names worth remembering are Bridget Bade (her academic qualifications are not in the same league as other candidates, so I think she's out); Britt Grant (too young, but a name to keep in mind in the future); and Allison Rushing (also too young now, but I'd put even money on her ending up on SCOTUS at some point).
It will be a fascinating week.
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