Powering forward with a decision that could reshape the Supreme Court for decades, President Donald Trump has said he will announce his choice to succeed retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy on July 9. He added that two women are among his top candidates for the job.
The president, who spoke aboard Air Force One on the way to his golf club in New Jersey, said he had identified a group of at least five potential candidates for the nation's high court and he may interview as many as seven. "It's a great group of intellectual talent," Trump said.
Kennedy, a key swing vote on the court, announced Wednesday that he would retire this summer. Kennedy's news that he'll leave the court next month immediately activated a network of White House aides, congressional allies and outside advocates, all set for their second Supreme Court confirmation fight in two years.
Trump told reporters he planned to begin interviewing possible candidates Monday but he may meet with some over the weekend in New Jersey. Asked if he planned to question potential court nominees their views on abortion rights and Roe v Wade, he responded, "That's not a question I'll be asking."