President Obama’s Supreme Court shortlist

By Ryan Miner 

According to a Hill report, President Obama has narrowed his list down to three candidates to replace the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia:

A trio of federal appellate judges made the cut: Merrick Garland, the chief judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia; Judge Sri Srinivasan, of the same court; and 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Paul Watford, according to sources who spoke to the wire service.

The first two are reportedly considered the top contenders.

Senate Republicans are vowing not to give Obama’s future Supreme Court nominee a hearing, but this strategy may prove futile should Hillary Clinton be elected president this November. Of the three candidates on Obama’s shortlist, Sri Srinivasan is seemingly the only palpable candidate who could endure a Republican Senate grilling.

Yesterday, Reason.com released an informative background piece on Srinivasan, the supposed frontrunner to replace Scalia on the High Court. Reason dug into Srinivasan’s legal philosophy, highlighting four possible policy areas where his legal record may receive scrutiny from a Senate panel: religious liberty, corporate litigation, gay marriage and unreasonable searches and seizures (the 4th Amendment).

Read Reason’s article on Srinivasan here.

To learn more about Sri Srinivasan, visit the following links below:

• SCOTUS Blog – Potential Nominee Sri Srinivasan appellate veteran
• The Hill – Left frets about Possible Obama pick for high court
• Fusion – Meet potential Obama nominee Sri Srinivasan, who could be the first Asian-American on the Supreme Court
• Politico – Greens wary of Sri Srinivasan’s fossil fuel past
• USA Today – Obama’s top judicial nominee wins Republicans’ praise

The other two names listed in The Hill’s report are federal judges Merrick B. Garland and Paul J. Watford.

To learn more about Merrick Garland, visit the following links below:

• The Washington Post – President Obama reportedly down to three finalists for Supreme Court vacancy
• The Washington Post – Merrick Garland’s been considered for the Supreme Court before – Is this his year?
• The Hill – One Judge who shouldn’t be on the Supreme Court short list
• National Review – The “Moderates” are not so moderate: Merrick Garland
• SCOTUS Blog – The potential nomination of Merrick Garland

To learn more about Paul J. Watford, visit the following links below:

• SCOTUS Blog – Ninth Circuit Judge Paul Watford is the most likely nominee to replace Antonin Scalia (superseded)
• CNN – The CNN Supreme Court shortlist
• On Labor – The Supreme Court vacancy and Labor: Paul Watford
• Alliance for Justice – Paul Watford
• ABC News: Potential Supreme Court Nominee Watford Cited as a Moderate

According to multiple news reports, the President is also considering Jane Kelly, Patricia Millett and Ketanji Brown Jackson.

My guess is that Obama chooses Srinivasan. As soon as Obama announces his decision, which is coming soon, according to multiple reports, we’ll keep you updated.