Amy Coney Barrett is at the top of the short list (Newser) – With the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, there's now an opening on the US Supreme Court, and with that a few possibilities to be President Trump's nominee, if he's indeed the one to make that nomination. USA Today reports on some names now being floated, including Allison Eid, a judge for the US Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, and Britt Grant, a judge for the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals who, at 42, is so far the youngest name mentioned for Ginsburg's seat. CNN adds in a few more, including Sen. Tom Cotton and Barbara Lagoa, an 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals judge who would be the second Supreme Court justice of Latino descent. But there's one name in particular being bandied about: Amy Coney Barrett, a judge on the 7th US Circuit Court of Appeals who's also said to be the judge Trump's long been "saving" for Ginsburg's spot.
Axios had a scoop on Barrett, a former clerk for Justice Antonin Scalia, in May 2019, and it laid out the appeal then of the 48-year-old judge for Trump, including her relative youth and past writings that indicate she'd be all in for overturning Roe v. Wade. The outlet notes Trump may have chosen to keep Barrett on the back burner all this time because he was afraid senators like Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska would balk at her nomination due to her opposition against abortion rights. Sources also say Trump may have been waiting to get more GOP seats in the Senate during the midterms, upping the odds that a more conservative judge like Barrett would get confirmed. As for when a nominee may be coming down the pike, sources tell ABC News that Trump is expected to have one ready in the "coming days." (Read more Supreme Court justice stories.)