President Trump’s sister, a federal judge, is weighing in on the Supreme Court vacancy, according to a new report.
Judge Maryanne Trump Barry has urged her brother to choose her colleague Judge Thomas Hardiman, Politico said Wednesday.
“Maryanne is high on Hardiman,” said one adviser who has spoken directly with President Trump on the matter.
{mosads}Politico said Barry and Hardiman serve together on the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in Pennsylvania.
Barry, 79, was first appointed to a federal district court more than three decades ago by President Ronald Reagan.
President Bill Clinton elevated her to appeals court in 1999, according to the report, where she then assumed senior status in 2011.
A second Trump adviser, though, told Politico that Barry’s support for Hardiman isn’t the only factor.
“I don’t think it’s fair to say the only reason he’s got juice on the list is because of her,” they said of Hardiman, who joined the 3rd Circuit in 2007.
A third Trump official said winning support from Trump’s family though could be important.
Trump on Wednesday said that he would reveal his nominee to replace the seat left vacant by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia next week.
“I will be making my Supreme Court pick on Thursday of next week,” he tweeted. “Thank you!”
Trump’s shortlist for the nation’s highest court reportedly includes Hardiman, federal Judge William Pryor of Alabama and federal Judge Neil Gorsuch of Colorado.