Since Scalia’s death, the high court has avoided some controversial issues, including a high profile case involving Gavin Grimm, a female-born transgender high school student who identifies as a male.
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Democrats feel the seat was “stolen”, and some have pledged to try to block a vote on Trump’s nominee, no matter who it is. President Trump, however, has suggested that the Senate should eliminate the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees if the Democrats do not play ball. All men are federal appeals judges with strong conservative records. That action had little precedent in USA history.
Overall in the last two years of the Obama presidency, when Republicans held a Senate majority, they only confirmed 20 federal judges, the fewest in 28 years, according to one count. This move maintained the vacancy on the court – leaving a space open for Trump to make his pick. Hardiman is 51 and Gorsuch is 49. While Trump has pledged to only place pro-life justices in place, what does that, exactly, mean for Americans who have hard decisions to make about their reproductive health?
Gorsuch served for two years in Bush’s Department of Justice before the president appointed him to an appeals court seat.
Advocacy groups geared up for a fight.
There’s no reason to assume he couldn’t use all three, but he hasn’t said anything about using Periscope, and the company’s CEO, Kayvon Beykpour, hasn’t been pleased with Trump’s immigration policies.
Why is the Supreme Court so important?
Trump released a list of possible Supreme Court nominees during his campaign, and he has said that the person he selected is from that list. Trump said he will announce his pick on prime time TV at 8 p.m.
Some Democrats said they would give Trump’s pick the fair hearing that Republican denied Garland.
Trump, of course, could also serve up a surprise nominee.
His nomination is certain to set off another pitched battle with Democrats, who have vowed to filibuster his pick.
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Sources familiar with the president’s SCOTUS decision have stated that Gorsuch has been informed that he is the front-runner but that Trump has reserved the ability to change his mind up until his announcement. The publication noted Gorsuch’s qualifications, adding that he’s most famous for setting the legal framework for the Hobby Lobby decision that undercut the Obama administration’s contraceptive mandate.
