Free Republic

Amul Thapar is emerging as the candidate to watch as President Trump mulls his next Supreme Court pick. While he isn't considered a top-tier contender to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy, the circuit court judge has a powerful ally in his corner: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). Combined with his age, 49, and ability to let Trump make history by appointing the first Asian-American to the Supreme Court, Thapar is being termed the "sleeper" candidate for the Supreme Court seat. The White House is reportedly focused more on federal appeals judges Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett and Raymond Kethledge. “Judge...

Amul Thapar, the first Indian American federal court jurist, met July 2 with President Donald Trump, who is interviewing potential nominees to fill the seat vacated by retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. Thapar, who currently serves on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and holds the distinction of being Trump’s first judicial appointee, was one of four possible candidates interviewed by the president. The Washington Post first broke the names of the other potential nominees, including federal appeals judges Raymond Kethledge, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett. The White House has said Trump intends to interview two more candidates...

President Donald Trump is expected to announce July 9 his nominee to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court. In 2016, Trump put together a list of potential Supreme Court picks during his campaign for president and has amended it twice—bringing the current total to 25 highly qualified conservative individuals. Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump I will be making my choice for Justice of the United States Supreme Court on the first Monday after the July 4th Holiday, July 9th! 7:33 AM - Jun 30, 2018 107K 39.1K people are talking about this Although the list is brimming with...

In Viuda de Mejia v. Sessions, in 2017, Thapar wrote for a 6th Circuit panel that upheld a Board of Immigration Appeals decision denying a Salvadoran woman’s asylum claim. Noting that the woman was required to establish that she was or would be persecuted for being a member of a particular social group, Thapar remarked that “[h]er proposed social groups have … expanded and contracted with each appeal as she searched for the right fit,” but that “novelty is not often rewarded on appeal.” And in United States v. Agyemano, in 2015, Thapar rejected a motion to dismiss a charge...