Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut accused President Trump of making himself a “puppet” to conservative groups who helped craft his list of 25 possible Supreme Court nominees.
“The president’s outsourced this decision to the Federalist Society and the Heritage Foundation. It is extraordinary,” Blumenthal told ABC News on Sunday. “I was a law clerk to Justice [Harry] Blackmun. I’ve argued cases before the Supreme Court. I’ve never seen a president of the United States in effect make himself a puppet of outside groups and choose from a group of right-wing fringe ideologues that are prepared on this list.”
After Justice Anthony Kennedy announced late last month he would be retiring from the Supreme Court, Trump said he would choose a successor from his list of 25 candidates.
The list, which originated from the 2016 presidential campaign and was expanded once Trump took office, was developed by the Federalist Society and the Heritage Foundation.
The president is expected to announce his nominee to the Supreme Court during a prime-time event Monday. Trump has reportedly narrowed his list of contenders to four federal appeals court judges: Brett Kavanaugh, Raymond Kethledge, Amy Coney Barrett, and Thomas Hardiman.
With Kennedy’s retirement, Trump will have named two justices to the Supreme Court.
