News / Politics

Obama nominates three to replace Justice Scalia

Sunday, 13 March 2016 3:03 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 13 March 2016 3:13 AM ]

Law clerks past and present line the steps as the casket of Associate Justice Antonin Scalia is carried by US Supreme Court police officers, up the steps of the Supreme Court building, on February 19, 2016 in Washington, DC. (Photo by AFP)

US President Barack Obama has chosen three top nominees to fill the Supreme Court vacancy left by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.

According to sources, reporting on Friday, the three who are federal appellate judges include Merrick Garland, the chief judge for the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia- Judge Sri Srinivasan, of the same court and 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Paul Watford.

US Federal appellate court judges: (from left) Sri Srinivasan, Paul Watford and Merrick Garland. (Photo on CNN)

"It’s somebody who I want to make sure follows the Constitution; cares about things like stare decisis and precedent; understands the necessary humility of a judge at any level in looking at statute, looking at what the elected branches are doing; is not viewing themselves as making law or, in some ways, standing above elected representatives," Obama said of his nominee.

The president said he's looking for someone who also "recognizes the critical role that that branch plays in protecting minorities to ensuring that the political system doesn’t skew in ways that systematically leave people out."

Srinivasan, 49, would be the first Indian-American and Hindu on the Supreme Court. He was unanimously confirmed by the Senate in 2013 to serve on the powerful D.C. appeals court.

He has strong ties to Republicans and is friends with Republican presidential candidate Senator Ted Cruz , dating back to their time clerking on the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Garland, 63, is the chief judge of the D.C. court with a moderate reputation in Washington.

Watford, 48, is a judge on the San Francisco-based 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, winning Senate confirmation in a 61-34 vote in 2012. He previously worked as a prosecutor and in private practice.

If confirmed, Watford would be only the third black Supreme Court justice in the nation’s history.

Republican leaders in the Senate have vowed not to hold hearings or votes on Obama’s nominee, arguing that the next president should name a replacement for Scalia, who led the court’s conservative wing.

US Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia (File photo)

The Supreme Court, without Scalia, is evenly split with four liberals and four conservatives. An Obama appointment could tilt the court to the left for the first time in decades.

Appointed to the top US court in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan, Scalia was known for his strident conservative views and was the longest serving justice to date.

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