Trump Has Reportedly Chosen Amy Coney Barrett as His Supreme Court Nominee

Though we’re still a day away from a formal announcement, Donald Trump has reportedly chosen his Supreme Court nominee. 

Republican sources tell CNN the president has selected Amy Coney Barrett, a conservative judge on Chicago’s 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Barrett is reportedly the only potential nominee who has met with Trump in-person. Insiders claim she was at the White House on Monday and Tuesday, and apparently impressed Trump during the initial meetings. 

“She was the plan all along. She’s the most distinguished and qualified by traditional measures,” a former senior administration official told CNN. “She has the strongest support among the legal conservatives who have dedicated their lives to the court. She will contribute most to the court’s jurisprudence in the years and decades to come.”

Barrett was reportedly a top contender for Trump’s SCOTUS pick in 2018, when the president was determining who would fill a seat vacated by Anthony Kennedy. Justice Brett Kavanaugh was ultimately chosen. Barrett, a devout Catholic, is a favorite among many social conservatives who would prefer to see another pro-life judge in the nation’s highest court.

During her 2017 confirmation hearing, Barrett said that as a circuit-court judge she would “faithfully apply all Supreme Court precedent,” including Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court’s 1973 decision that recognized a woman’s right to abortion. However, if she is appointed to the Supreme Court, Barrett has the opportunity to reconsider Roe v. Wade and potentially vote to overturn the decision.