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Donald Trump presidential campaign, 2016/Supreme Court
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This page was current as of the 2016 election.
See below what Donald Trump and the 2016 Republican Party Platform said about the Supreme Court.
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Trump on the Supreme Court
- At a town hall on December 12, 2015, Donald Trump criticized Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts for upholding the Affordable Care Act. Trump said, “What he did to Obamacare was disgraceful and I think he did it because he wanted to be popular in the beltway or something, because he did it the first time, and should have never done it and that would have killed it.” Trump added that Justice Clarence Thomas was “highly underrated.”[2]
- In July 2012, Trump called the Supreme Court's decision maintaining the constitutionality of Obamacare "a disaster." Trump added Chief Justice John Roberts, who authored the opinion, was "extremely disloyal" and "wanted to be loved by the Washington establishment."[3]
- In April 2012, Trump criticized President Barack Obama for suggesting it would be unprecedented if the Supreme Court overturned Obamacare, saying, "I think he paid great disrespect to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is the Supreme Court for a reason. And it almost is as though he didn't care what they said and they shouldn't be making the decision, and this decision is above them, and they don't exist. And I would think it would be very insulting to go to the Supreme Court with what he said."[4]
Statements in response to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
- In an interview with Maggie Haberman of The New York Times published July 12, 2016, Trump made the following remarks regarding Justice Ginsburg's comments about his possibly becoming president: "I think it's highly inappropriate that a United States Supreme Court judge gets involved in a political campaign, frankly ... I think it's a disgrace to the court and I think she should apologize to the court. I couldn't believe it when I saw it .. That she should be saying that? It's so beneath the court for her to be making statements like that. It only energizes my base even more. And I would hope that she would get off the court as soon as possible."[5]
- In a posted tweet on July 13, Trump called for Justice Ginsburg's resignation, saying that she "has embarrassed all by making very dumb political statements about me. Her mind is shot - resign!"[6]
- Read Justice Ginsburg's comments on Donald Trump, 2016.
Statements on U.S. Supreme Court Nominee Merrick Garland
- During an interview on CNN on March 16, 2016, Donald Trump discussed the process for choosing the next United States Supreme Court justice. He said, "I think the next president should make the pick, and I think they shouldn’t go forward, and I believe I’m pretty much in line with what the Republicans are saying."[7]
Statements on the death of Antonin Scalia and the Supreme Court vacancy
- In response to a question from moderator Chris Wallace during the third presidential debate on October 19, 2016, Donald Trump gave the following remarks on the U.S. Supreme Court, "The Supreme Court, it is what it is all about. Our country is so, so, it is just so imperative that we have the right justices. Something happened recently where Justice Ginsburg made some very inappropriate statements toward me and toward a tremendous number of people. Many, many millions of people that I represent and she was forced to apologize. And apologize she did. But these were statements that should never, ever have been made. We need a Supreme Court that in my opinion is going to uphold the second amendment and all amendments, but the second amendment which is under absolute siege. I believe, if my opponent should win this race, which I truly don't think will happen, we will have a second amendment which will be a very, very small replica of what it is right now. But I feel that it is absolutely important that we uphold because of the fact that it is under such trauma. I feel that the justices that I am going to appoint, and I've named 20 of them. The justices that I am going to appoint will be pro-life. They will have a conservative bent. They will be protecting the second amendment. They are great scholars in all cases and they're people of tremendous respect. They will interpret the constitution the way the founders wanted it interpreted and I believe that’s very important. I don't think we should have justices appointed that decide what they want to hear. It is all about the constitution of, and it is so important. The constitution the way it was meant to be. And those are the people that I will appoint."[8]
- Trump released a list of names from which he would choose nominees to the U.S. Supreme Court as president on September 23, 2016. The list includes four state supreme court judges, four federal appellate judges, and two federal district court judges. This list adds to a list of 11 potential nominees Trump released on May 18, 2016. In a press release, Trump thanked the Federalist Society and the Heritage Foundation, among others, for help in constructing the list.[9] For a complete list of Trump's potential nominees to the Supreme Court, click here.
- On February 14, 2016, Donald Trump said that he was joking when he stated in 2015 that he would appoint his sister, federal judge Maryanne Trump Barry, to the Supreme Court if given the opportunity. He said, “My sister’s a brilliant person, known as a brilliant person, but it’s obviously a conflict. … My sister, also she — she also happens to have a little bit different views than me, but I said in that in a very joking matter, and it was all lots of fun and everything else.”[10]
- At the Republican presidential debate on February 13, 2016, Trump identified federal judges Diane Sykes and William Pryor as potential replacements for Antonin Scalia. He added that he expected President Barack Obama would nominate a justice and that it was "up to Mitch McConnell, and everybody else to stop it. It's called delay, delay, delay."[11]
- Earlier on February 13, 2016, Trump tweeted, "The totally unexpected loss of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is a massive setback for the Conservative movement and our COUNTRY!"[12]
| The 2016 Republican Party Platform on the judiciary | ||||||
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Recent news
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See also
- Supreme Court vacancy, 2016: An overview
- Impact of the 2016 election on the United States Supreme Court
- U.S. Senators on the nomination of Merrick Garland
- Presidential candidates, 2016
- Process to fill the vacated seat of Justice Antonin Scalia
Footnotes
- ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Donald Trump Enters 2016 Presidential Race," June 16, 2015
- ↑ ABC News, December 12, 2015
- ↑ Politico, "Donald Trump: ‘Roberts wanted to be loved’," July 2, 2012
- ↑ FOX News, "Trump: President Obama's comments on Supreme Court's pending decision on health care law 'first grade stuff'," April 4, 2012
- ↑ The New York Times, "Donald Trump Rebukes Ruth Bader Ginsburg for Deriding His Candidacy," July 12, 2016
- ↑ Twitter, "Donald J. Trump," July 13, 2016
- ↑ The New York Times, "Candidates Stick to Party Lines in Debate Over Supreme Court Nomination," accessed March 19, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Full transcript: Third 2016 presidential debate," October 20, 2016
- ↑ NPR, "Donald Trump Unveils New, More Diverse Supreme Court Short List," September 23, 2016
- ↑ The New York Times, "Trump Says He Was Kidding in Suggesting His Sister for the Court," February 14, 2016
- ↑ The Washington Post, "The CBS News Republican debate transcript, annotated," February 13, 2016
- ↑ Twitter, "Donald Trump," February 13, 2016
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Republican Party, "The 2016 Republican Party Platform," accessed August 23, 2016
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