There Might Be a Limited Supply of Judges Willing to Make a Supreme Court Kamikaze Run

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Just a quick note about who Obama is going to nominate for the Supreme Court: it has to be someone willing to make a kamikaze run. It’s going to be a grueling experience for nothing, since Republicans will be happy to put the nominee through the wringer but plainly won’t vote to confirm. In fact, it might be for less than nothing. Whoever gets picked probably can’t be renominated if a Democrat wins in November.

Most likely, then, you’re putting yourself through a punishing ordeal in order to ruin your chances of ever getting a Supreme Court seat. That’s the kind of thing a party loyalist might do, but a circuit court judge? What’s the upside?

Anyway, all this is just to say that Obama may have trouble finding someone willing to be nominated. Keep that in mind when you browse through all the lists of potential candidates.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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