Justice Samuel Alito has no plans to retire from the Supreme Court anytime soon, according to a person close to the justice. told the Wall Street JournalThat prompted speculation among some Republican leaders that Alito, 74, could vacate his seat to make room for a younger, more conservative jurist. The brakes were put on hold.
Rumors about Mr. Alito's retirement began flying almost immediately after Mr. Trump won the 2024 election, with Republicans set to regain control of the Senate and maintain their majority in the House of Representatives in January.
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Media is shown outside the U.S. Supreme Court. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Because there is no filibuster allowed for Supreme Court appointments, the Republican majority will continue to support Trump even if the Supreme Court's two oldest conservative justices, Alito and Clarence Thomas, retire. will face little resistance in approving the appointment of high court judges.
Mr. Alito has made it clear that there are no such plans.
“Despite what some people may think, he is a man who has never thought of this job from a political perspective,” said a source close to Alito. He told the Wall Street Journal: The newspaper first reported his intention to remain on the bench.
“The idea of retiring for political reasons is not in line with his true nature,” the person added.
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Current members of the U.S. Supreme Court (Alex Wong/Getty Images/File)
Mr. Alito was appointed to the Supreme Court by President George W. Bush in 2006.
Mr. Alito, 74, is the second oldest justice on the court, after Justice Clarence Thomas, 76, who was appointed to the court in 1991 by President George H.W. Bush. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, appointed by President Obama in 2009, is 70 years old.
But one report said the pressure for Alito and Thomas to step down to make way for younger candidates chosen by Trump comes as public support for the Supreme Court is in the mid-40s. Currently, there is the possibility of causing serious polarization. gallup survey In September.
Conservatives currently hold a 6-3 majority on the Supreme Court. President Trump appointed three Supreme Court justices during his first term, maintaining a conservative majority. President Biden most recently nominated Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the court in 2022, following the retirement of Justice Stephen Breyer.
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If Mr. Alito and Mr. Thomas leave the court, Mr. Trump could become the first president since fellow Republican Mr. Eisenhower to nominate a majority of Supreme Court justices.
