Trump to reveal second SCOTUS list, more in keeping with his sensibilities, after securing nomination

AROUND THE BLOCK

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Trump announces potential Supreme Court appointees

Signals conservatives that he will choose a “Scalia” type

The New York Times today reported that Donald J. Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, released a list of potential Supreme Court nominees on Wednesday as part of an effort to quell concerns that he would not select conservative jurists.

Top picks include conservative federal and state judges like Steven Colloton of Iowa, Allison Eid of Colorado and Raymond Gruender of Missouri as well as Thomas Hardiman of Pennsylvania, Raymond Kethledge of Michigan, Joan Larsen of Michigan, Thomas Lee of Utah, William Pryor of Alabama, David Stras of Minnesota, Diane Sykes of Wisconsin and Don Willett of Texas.

While in the past, Trump has “joked” that as president he would appoint his sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, a federal appeals court judge in Philadelphia, to the Supreme Court, his announcement today is meant to be a signal to conservatives that he would choose a justice in the mold of the late conservative icon, Antonin Scalia.

Signal or not, it is well known that Mr. Trump is prone to changing his mind and, while the judges on the list are all conservative favorites, none are actually known to Trump or are part out of his world.

In an exclusive, Around the Block has learned that there is actually a second potential list of judges, all of whom are more in keeping with Trump’s sensibilities and background.

This second list includes:

• Judge Judy Sheindlin of the Judge Judy Show;

• Judge Joe Brown of the Judge Joe Brown Show;

• Judge Greg Mathis of the Judge Mathis Show;

• Judge Lynn Toler of Divorce Court;

• Judge Alex Ferrer of the Judge Alex Show;

• Judge Marian Milian of The Peoples’s Court; 

• and, in a surprise move, 96-year old Judge Joseph Wapner, Judge Emeritus of The People’s Court.

It is believed that once Trump secures the nomination, and no longer needs to accede to the demands of mainstream Republican party leaders, this second list will be revealed publicly and the potential appointees will be thoroughly vetted by Trump’s Supreme Court selection committee headed by reality show gurus Mark Burnett, Simon Cowell and Kim Kardashian.