James Ho’s Post-Election Remarks Fuel Supreme Court Speculation
Fifth Circuit Judge James Ho’s public remarks since Election Day have rekindled talk of a possible audition for the Supreme Court.
In the days after President-elect Donald Trump won back the White House, Ho referenced a gaffe by President Joe Biden against Trump supporters, publicly changed his position on birthright citizenship in a way that aligns with the Trump agenda, and appeared on a popular legal podcast from a conservative news outlet.
“For judges who are ambitious, it’s a way to put your name on the Supreme Court shortlist,” Kenneth Manning, a professor at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth who researches judges, said of Ho’s recent comments. “I don’t think there are many people who doubt that Ho’s maneuvers here are probably an attempt to do that.” . . .
There are no current vacancies on the Supreme Court, and none of the justices have publicly indicated plans to step down. But Ho, 51, a former law clerk for Justice Clarence Thomas who was on a past shortlist for a Trump Supreme Court pick, has both the conservative resume and academic credentials that could see him help cement the high court’s conservative supermajority for the coming decades.
One of his former law clerks threw cold water on the idea that Ho has a Supreme Court seat in mind. (Read more from “James Ho’s Post-Election Remarks Fuel Supreme Court Speculation” HERE)
