‘I Hope He Doesn’t Retire … But If He Does …’
As the end of the Supreme Court term inches closer, Republicans’ nudging of Justice Samuel Alito toward the exits has become more public.
President Trump broached the topic for the first time Wednesday on Fox News.
“In theory, it’s two — you just read the statistics — it could be two, could be three, could be one,” he said to host Maria Bartiromo. “I don’t know. I’m prepared to do it. But when you mention Alito, he is a great justice.”
“Justice Alito is an unbelievable justice, and a brilliant justice, and he gets the country,” he added. “He does what’s right for the country. It’s the law, and he goes by it as much as anybody, but he gets to the point. That’s good for our country. So … one way you should be, ‘Oh, I’m thrilled,’ but he’s so good.”
Republicans are increasingly eager for Alito, 76, to retire at the end of the term before the midterms threaten their Senate majority. Alito’s imminent publishing of a legacy-shaping book— So Ordered: An Originalist’s View of the Constitution, the Court, and Our Country — is seen as another indication that he might be planning to depart. The book will be published October 6, the same time as the Court’s first argument session of the new term.
Justice Clarence Thomas, 77, has been speculated about less, perhaps because he’s about two years away from becoming the longest serving justice in Supreme Court history.
Public pressure on the two has been surprisingly muted thus far, given the salience of judicial actuarial math since Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death during Trump’s first term. But Trump’s remarks accompany some other indications that calls will grow louder in conjunction with the nearing midterms.
Fox News reported earlier this month that Alito had been treated for dehydration at a hospital in March following his attendance at a Federalist Society event. The timing of the previously undisclosed event becoming public knowledge is notable.
And another prominent Republican, former Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA) sidled up to the topic this week.
“I hope he doesn’t retire,” he told reporters of Alito. “But if he does retire, I’m going to suggest that either Lee or Cruz be put on the Supreme Court.”
— Kate Riga
Vought Doesn’t Even Have a Ballpark for How Much the Trump Admin Spent on the Iran War So Far
The cost of the ongoing war with Iran, that President Trump has dragged the U.S. into, was one of the most popular lines of questioning in today’s Senate Budget Committee hearing where Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought testified.
Vought was initially asked by Ranking Member Jeff Merkley (D-OR) for a ballpark number on how much money has been spent on the war so far.
“I wouldn’t want to make a characterization of that at this point,” Vought said, refusing to even provide a ballpark figure.
Later, he was pressed by Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, on the same issue.
“You have no idea — none — how much has been spent on the war so far?” Murray asked Vought.
“We don’t have that figures right now. I think in part because it’s fluctuating on a day in, day out basis,” Vought responded.
“You can’t even give us a range?” Murray pressed.
“No, I’m not gonna give you a range because I don’t want to be inaccurate,” Vought said.
“You’re just not gonna tell us because you don’t want us to know how much is being spent … I just find it outrageous that as director you’re not willing to tell us what those costs are. It’s your job to know,” Murray said.
Vought also confirmed that the White House is working on a supplemental request, but said the Trump administration has not yet made a decision on how much funding it will ask Congress to approve for the Iran war.
He said they “want to continue to assess” the ongoing war, including “how long the operations will last,” before they send over a request.
The president’s budget request already included a call for a $1.5 trillion budget for the Department of Defense — formally requesting $350 billion to be approved through the party line reconciliation process — for the upcoming fiscal year.
If that request is approved it would be the largest boost to the military’s budget in modern history, not counting the times the U.S. was involved in a war where they had boots on the ground.
— Emine Yücel
Franklin Graham Jumps to Trump’s Defense
The son of one of the most prominent Christian evangelists in history is bending over backwards to defend President Trump after the evangelical community began turning on him — mildly — for posting a photo of himself depicted as Jesus Christ. Rev. Franklin Graham posted on Twitter Thursday, telling his followers that we should all take Trump at his word when he says that he thought that the image was actually showing him as a doctor.
“When I looked at the illustration, I didn’t jump to the same conclusion as some. There were no spiritual references — no halo, there were no crosses, no angels. It was a flag, soldiers, a nurse, fighter planes, eagles, the Statue of Liberty, and I think this is a lot to do about nothing,” Graham said, calling the backlash “ill-intended speculation.”
It’s a totally disengenuous thing to say, especially coming from such a leading evangelical figure who has presumably been around common Christian illustrations and depictions of Christ since birth.
But Franklin Graham is no Billy, as my dad (a Nazarene preacher) says, and has been serving as a sort of hacky conduit to the evangelical community for Trump since he was first elected in 2016. A sampling of my old headlines for TPM, for some context:
2018: Son Of Billy Graham Defends Trump From Affair Allegations: He’s ‘Changed’
2019: Franklin Graham Hits Buttigieg For Being Gay: ‘Not Something To Be Flaunted’
2019: Pastor Apologizes To Congregants ‘Hurt’ By Decision To Pray Over Trump On Stage
2019: Franklin Graham Calls For ‘Special Day Of Prayer’ To Protect Trump From ‘Enemies’
— Nicole LaFond
In Case You Missed It
More on Vought’s hearing before the Senate Budget Committee today, from Emine: ‘He Just Lied to America’: Russ Vought Denies Violating Impoundment Laws, Prompting Sharp Response
New edition of The Franchise by Khaya Himmelman out today: Mike Lindell Won’t Let a Pesky Contempt of Court Finding Get Him Down
Josh Kovensky has more reporting from Texas out today: Inside Texas Republicans’ Effort to Make the Midterms About Islamophobia
Morning Memo: Hegseth to Reporters: Whose Side Are You On?
Yesterday’s Most Read Story
A Historically Bad Day for the Rule of Law in America
What We Are Reading
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It’s hard to imagine who is the worst person Shitler could nominate for the high court, but whoever the worst person is, he’ll (and it will be a he) get the nomination.
Thee are several people auditioning for the supreme court position. They better audition louder if they want to be a contender.
It’s a little too close to the election I’m afraid, you’ll have to wait for the next President
I wonder if that would prompt Coney Barrett to do a revival tour of her wildly successful “My goal today is to convince you that this court is not comprised of a bunch of partisan hacks” road show.
Hmm. I’m no art critic by my interpretation of the AI fan art seems a bit different from the ever reverent Frank Graham.
What I saw in the illustration was the Christification of Dr. Toad-glans mit der Bone Spurs von Queens resurrecting Jeffery Epstein. He appeared to be saying, “I had you killed but now you’re healed, so let’s pick up some chicks and head to the Island. We’ll make every day become another wonderful secret. Nudge, nudge. Wink wink.”