NBC News reported on Monday that a Supreme Court analyst pegged Attorney General Loretta Lynch as the most likely replacement for late conservative Justice Antonin Scalia.
Tom Goldstein, who runs the SCOTUSblog, updated his prediction from Ninth Circuit Judge Paul Watford to Lynch noting that since she was recently vetted to become attorney general, her nomination could be a way to expedite the process. “The stakes could not be higher: the appointment could flip the Supreme Court’s ideological balance for decades,” Goldstein wrote. Just the nomination of Lynch would be historical; she would be the first black woman ever nominated to the Supreme Court.
CNN developed its own short list of possible nominations. In regard to Lynch, they said she would be a controversial choice due to her close ties with the Obama administration.
President Obama has two options: nominate a consensus candidate — someone who the Senate Republicans would confirm — or he can chose an ideological fight for someone who emulates his political views and goals. Lynch would be a political fight.
Sri Srinivasan, a 48-year-old judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, seems to be the likely consensus choice. “He is a top contender if the President wants a so-called consensus nominee who could peel off enough GOP votes to get past a filibuster,” CNN reported. To put this into perspective: Srinivasan was approved by the Senate in a 97-0 vote to the Court of Appeals. Born in India, he would be the first Asian-American to serve on SCOTUS. However, he wouldn’t be a favorite for some Democrats considering his record of representing corporations like ExxonMobile.
Other possible nominees include Merrick Garland, Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia; Jacqueline Nguyen, 9th Circuit Court of Appeals; Jane Kelly, 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, and David Barron, 1st Circuit Court of Appeals.
Not sure why this nomination is dominating headlines? This New York Times article makes it pretty clear.
