Former US Senator Jon Kyl would serve as the Sherpa for President Donald Trump's nominee to the Supreme Court, the White House said today, hours ahead of the scheduled announcement in this regard.
Trump is scheduled to make his much-awaited announcement during his prime time address to the nation tomorrow at 9 pm (1 am GMT).
In his presidency of less than two years, this would be his second Supreme Court judge nomination.
"Former Senator Jon Kyl has agreed to serve as the Sherpa for the President's nominee to the Supreme Court," White House Spokesman Raj Shah said.
Kyl represented the state of Arizona in the US Senate for 18 years, from 1995 to 2013. He served on the Senate Judiciary Committee during the confirmations of four of the last five justices who have joined the Supreme Court.
As such, Kyl is expected to play a key role in removing the hurdles in the confirmation process of Trump's nominee.
"I have long heard that the most important decision a US President can make is the selection of a Supreme Court Justice - Will be announced tonight at 9 pm," Trump said in a tweet earlier in the day.
The White House said that Trump has kept his promise to be transparent, and to choose justices for the Supreme Court from a list made public for the American people to see and evaluate.
The list of 25 includes Indian American judge Amul Thapar. Media reports said that he is not in the list of top three-four judges.
Last week, Trump said that his greatest responsibility is to select a Justice who will faithfully interpret the Constitution as written.
"Judges are not supposed to re-write the law, re-invent the Constitution, or substitute their own opinions for the will of the people expressed through their laws. We reject judicial activism and policy-making from the bench," he said.
"The faithful application of the Constitution is the bedrock of our freedom, the foundation of our society, and the linchpin of our government. The American System tasks Congress with writing the laws, the executive with enforcing the laws, and the judiciary with issuing neutral judgements based upon those laws and the Constitution we have sworn to protect," Trump said in his weekly address to the nation.
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