"Among 5 Female Candidates, Goryeo"
WSJ Reports Barrett and Lagoa as Leading Judges
Judge Amy Coney Barrett of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, considered a leading candidate to succeed the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, delivering a commencement address at the Notre Dame University Law School graduation ceremony in South Bend, Indiana, on May 19, 2018. Judge Barrett has strong support from Christian evangelical groups. [Photo by South Bend Tribune] [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] U.S. President Donald Trump announced on the 21st (local time) that he will nominate a successor to the late progressive icon Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on either the 25th or 26th.
In an interview with Fox News on the same day, President Trump stated this and insisted, "The confirmation vote for the new Supreme Court nominee must take place before the presidential election." He explained that he has shortlisted five female candidates.
The Wall Street Journal, citing sources, reported that Amy Coney Barrett and Barbara Lagoa, federal appellate judges, are the most likely candidates.
It is estimated that President Trump is likely to choose between the two, who have received support from the 'Bible Belt' region and Florida respectively, based on which side would be more advantageous for winning the election.
President Trump said, "We won the election, and elections produce results," adding, "There is enough time." This is interpreted as emphasizing that, as the current president, he has the authority to nominate a new Supreme Court justice and that the Senate has enough time to hold a confirmation vote before the November 3 election.
This expresses a strong determination to complete the nomination and confirmation of the new justice before the election, thereby fully shifting the ideological balance of the U.S. Supreme Court to the conservative side. With Ginsburg's death, the current Supreme Court is ideologically composed of five conservatives and three progressives. If Ginsburg's successor is a conservative, the U.S. Supreme Court will inevitably operate with an absolute conservative majority for a long time.
If the conservative dominance of the Supreme Court deepens, there is also a possibility that the Court could issue rulings favorable to President Trump in the event of vote-counting disputes caused by the expansion of mail-in voting in this election.
President Trump expressed strong dissatisfaction with Republican Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, who argued that the confirmation of Ginsburg's successor should be postponed until after the election. Trump claimed, "Senators Collins and Murkowski were deeply hurt by the statement advocating a delay in confirmation." This can be interpreted as a warning to prevent further defections within the Republican Party.
Barbara Lagoa, a Cuban-American female judge of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, is being considered as a successor to the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. If President Trump nominates Judge Lagoa as a Supreme Court candidate, he could expect support from the key battleground state of Florida and the Hispanic community. [Provided by the Florida Supreme Court] [Image source=Yonhap News]
The defection of these two has put a red light on the Republican Party's handling of the confirmation vote for the Supreme Court nominee. If two more senators oppose the confirmation, it will become impossible for the Republican leadership to push through the confirmation. Senators Mitt Romney and Cory Gardner are classified as possible opponents of the confirmation vote. Accordingly, the Republican leadership plans to discuss the confirmation vote procedure and convene party members this week to enforce party discipline.
Contrary to the positions of President Trump and the Republican Party, the Democratic Party and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden strongly oppose the forced appointment of Ginsburg's successor but currently have no effective means to block it.
In response, candidate Biden appealed in a speech the day before, saying, "If I am elected president, I will immediately withdraw the nomination," while also urging, "I hope Republican senators will act according to their conscience."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in an interview the day before that when asked if impeachment of President Trump would be possible if the confirmation is forced, "It is an option."
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