Today’s Wall Street Journal has an interesting article entitled Trump Loyalists Push for a Combative Slate of New Judges.
The article details the on-going battle between traditional conservatives and Trump supporters for future control of the federal judiciary.
The old-guard traditionalists are represented by the Federalist Society which advocates center-right political and judicial views. For decades this institution has successfully recommended federal court appointments to Republican presidents. (A list of the society’s most-notable members is available here.)
According to the WSJ,
Since losing the 2020 election, Trump has broken with Federalist Society leaders who had eagerly boosted his blitz of judicial appointments during his first term but later balked at his efforts to thwart President Biden’s victory and didn’t openly support him as he faced dozens of criminal charges.
Enter America First Legal, created and run by former Trump adviser Stephan Miller. The organization’s mission, according to its website, is to build “a team of some of the nation’s best legal, political, and strategic thinkers to challenge [liberal/progressive] lawlessness at every turn.” The group has acted on this mission statement by filing a number of lawsuits throughout the nation.
Should Trump win the 2024 election, he will likely seek advice from groups such as America First Legal when making his federal court appointments.
Below is a list of sitting judges who could be advanced to a higher court under a Trump presidency:
- Aileen Cannon, Southern District of Florida;
- Andrew Oldham, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals;
- Patrick Bumatay, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals;
- Greg Katsas, District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals;
- Neomi Rao, District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals;
- Eric Murphy, Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals;
- John Nalbandian, Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals; and
- Amul Thapar, Sixth Circuit Court of Appels.
Of course, any nominee chosen by Mr. Trump (if elected) must win senate approval. Even if the Republican Party takes control of the Senate in 2024, Trump’s nominees must be able to placate moderate party members such as Lisa Murkowksi (R-Alaska) and Susan Collins (R-Maine).