Ted Cruz really likes Mike Lee for SCOTUS, but there’s also one person in the running he DOESN’T LIKE…

by The Right Scoop

This morning Ted Cruz wrote an op-ed laying out why he likes Mike Lee so much for the Supreme Court. Here’s what he had to say:

Lee would interpret the Constitution and laws according to their original meaning and text. He literally wrote the book on the lost clauses of our Constitution and how they protect our fundamental liberties.

A Justice Lee wouldn’t let activist lower courts distort the meaning of our laws and Constitution in order to impose their left-wing preferences on the nation. After all, who knows better that a judge’s job is to apply the law as it is – and not to legislate from the bench – than someone who was previously a legislator himself?

Mike Lee has a proven track record as a formidable advocate for the separation of powers, for federalism, for the Bill of Rights, and for a limited judicial role that adheres to originalism and textualism in judicial interpretation.

This is the judicial model that made Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas so revered by conservatives, and it is why Justice Neil Gorsuch has been such a strong success for President Trump. And now the president has the chance to do it again with Sen. Lee.

He also points out that Lee has the best chance of being nominated:

Finally, President Trump should consider the single biggest political advantage that Lee has over every other name on his list of potential nominees. As a U.S. senator, his nomination process would be simple and his confirmation would not be in doubt.

Sen. Lee has the respect and admiration of his colleagues, Republicans and Democrats alike. And even with Republicans’ slim majority, senators on both sides of the aisle would have little trouble giving their advice and consent to a nominee they have served alongside for years.

When it comes to this Supreme Court nomination, President Trump can have it all. He can bring home another huge victory for conservatives with success being certain. And he can honor his promise to the American people to nominate justices “in the mold of Scalia and Thomas.” No other nominee fits that mold like Mike Lee.

I’ve already told you this morning that according to the White House Lee isn’t really in the running at this point. I’m sure that could change, but for now it appears he’s not in the six finalists.

But there is one person who is in the running that Ted Cruz is against: Brett Kavanaugh. According to Politico, Cruz came out Monday against Kavanaugh’s appointment:

But Kavanaugh is opposed by powerful conservatives, including Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who has argued that once on the bench, he will disappoint the right.

On a call with associates on Monday, Cruz warned that Kavanaugh is the sort of “unreliable” jurist by whom Republicans have been disappointed in the past, and he has worked to bolster the prospects of his colleague, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah). Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) also spoke to the president about the merits and drawbacks of each nominee, including Kavanaugh.

I can’t find that he’s said much more about Kavanaugh than that. But if he’s right Kavanaugh would be more like a John Roberts pick than a Neil Gorsuch.

It also doesn’t help conservatives to see Kavanaugh in a photo like this:

All that being said, the news media reports that Kavanaugh is the top dog right now with Kethledge running a close second:

Word on the conservative street is both Kethledge or Barrett would be preferable to Kavanaugh. But we’ll have to wait and see where Trump goes with it. Only a few days left…


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