Trump To Name 'Bold ... Fearless ... Battle-Tested' Federal Judges

The White House is moving to resume President Trump’s transformation of the federal judiciary. The process looks different this time. Trump’s first round of judicial nominations since returning to office is expected within the next few weeks, Politico reports. Former White House counsel Don McGahn, who had fallen out of favor with the president, is returning as an informal adviser. outside adviser Stephen Kenny, the deputy White House counsel for nominations who previously worked for Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA), is laying the groundwork to move judges through the confirmation process swiftly, tasked with interfacing with lawmakers and interviewing potential nominees. Trump’s mark on the judiciary — appointing more than 200 judges and bolstering the conservative majority on the Supreme Court — has been viewed as one of the most significant achievements of his first term.

As federal courts move to block his administration’s agenda and the president is emboldened to challenge judges' authority, Trump allies have a renewed appetite to reshape the courts. With even stalwart conservatives like Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett drawing the ire of the MAGA right, Trump’s judicial pipeline is seeking a key qualification: loyalty. “They’re going to be looking for even more bold and fearless judges,” said Trump ally Mike Davis, Grassley’s former chief counsel for nominations who assisted the first Trump administration with Supreme Court fights. “Judges who have been battle-tested.” Democrats fear that this time, they will be younger and more ideological. There’s little that the minority party can do to block any nominee, as Republicans have a 53-seat Senate majority and the chamber did away with the rule requiring nominees to clear a 60-vote threshold to advance to confirmation. “I think they will be more ideologically extreme, on the fringe of what used to be the Republican Party,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, adding, "We’re heading over a cliff in terms of fringe right wing views. They will have a litmus test on steroids.”