President-elect Donald Trump has already dramatically reshaped the Supreme Court. Depending on circumstances, he could reshape it for decades to come during his second term in office.
During his first term, Trump appointed three justices, the most for any executive since President Ronald Reagan. They include Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett.
Democrats have been critical of the six conservative justices, but—with Republicans projected to reclaim the Senate with 53 seats to Democrats’ 47—they have little power to act on those criticisms.
With those seats, Trump has at least a two year window to appoint new justices should any vacancies arise. Some have suggested that Justices Samuel Alito, 74, and Clarence Thomas, 76, may resign, but they’ve announced no intention to do so to this point.
Should he fill at least two vacancies, he would be the first president since Dwight Eisenhower to place five nominees on the court.
Already, Trump’s nominees have helped to overturn longstanding precedents, most notably in their 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
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Gorsuch, Kavanagh, and Barrett also contributed to changes to precedents related to presidential immunity and executive branch rulemaking.
They’ve based these decisions on a broadly Originalist approach, describing an approach to law that focuses on the original intended meaning of the Constitution. Should Trump further expand the court, the court could continue to move in this direction.
The decision in Dobbs also raises questions about a series of other cases that rely on “substantive due process,” which stems from the 14th Amendment’s due process clause, including some that struck down state laws on birth control, sodomy, and marriage.
However, conservative justices, with the exception of Thomas, have indicated that they don’t intend the decision that overturned Roe v. Wade to touch those issues.
—Sam Dorman, Joseph Lord
President-elect Donald Trump has chosen the co-chair of his campaign, Susie Wiles, to be his White House chief of staff,
She’ll become the first woman to serve in the role—as well as one of the most powerful women in Washington.
Here’s what you should know about the incoming chief of staff.
From Washington to Florida Politics
Wiles got her start in politics in the Sunshine State, beginning her political career as a staff assistant for Rep. Jack Kemp (R-N.Y.) from 1979 until 1980.
She also served in several roles in President Ronald Reagan’s White House, the Department of Labor, and, later, as a comms specialist for then-candidate Dan Quayle, who’d go on to be elected vice president in 1988.
Wiles was also the senior executive in the office of Jacksonville Mayor John Delaney, a Republican, before being promoted to chief of staff.
GOP Campaign Successes
Beginning in the 2000s, Wiles has worked in proximity to several high-profile campaigns for Republicans who ended up winning their races.
One notable included Rick Scott in his first political campaign, his 2010 gubernatorial bid. Scott would serve two terms before being elected as a senator of the state in 2018.
In 2012, Wiles served as co-chair of Mitt Romney’s Florida advisory council, after briefly managing the 2012 presidential campaign of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman.
She’s also been credited with possibly having saved then-Rep. Ron DeSantis’s 2018 gubernatorial bid in Florida, having served as senior advisor during the crucial electoral period from Sept. 2018 to Jan. 2019.
Joining Trump’s Campaign
Wiles met Trump at Trump Tower in New York City in the summer of 2015 during the GOP presidential primary.
Trump later named Wiles the co-chair of his Florida operation, where she helped deliver a Republican victory in two consecutive elections before Republicans grew a massive voter registration advantage over Democrats in Florida after 2021.
In March 2021, Trump hired Wiles to serve as CEO of his Save America Leadership PAC. Then, along with Chris LaCivita, Wiles co-chaired Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. She was crucial in urging Trump to accept mail-in voting, which was essential to his win in 2024.
Soft-Spoken Approach
Despite her prominent role in the campaign, Wiles is described as preferring to stay in the background, avoiding the limelight.
“Susie likes to stay sort of in the back, let me tell you. The ice baby. We call her the ice baby. Susie likes to stay in the background. She’s not in the background,” Trump added. “Thank you, Susie.”
She recently broke her customary silence to respond to a criticism directed at Trump by billionaire Mark Cuban in a post on X.
Consultant and Lobbyist
Wiles has also worked as a consultant and lobbyist since entering politics.
Between 2001 and 2004, she was the principal of Wiles Consulting, Inc., which provided “government affairs and communications consulting to a variety of clients.”
Wiles recently lobbied for the Swisher International tobacco company and is the co-chair of the lobbying giant Mercury Public Affairs. Mercury’s clients include AT&T, the Embassy of Qatar, and SpaceX.
—Jacob Burg, Joseph Lord
BOOKMARKS
Sen. Rick Scott’s bid for GOP Senate leader is gaining momentum after several Trump allies endorsed him yesterday, The Epoch Times’ Mark Tapscott reported.
Many House races remain uncalled nearly a week after the election. The Epoch Times’ Jacob Burg reported on the status of the yet-uncalled contests.
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) netted some endorsements from prominent conservatives in the race for the Senate majority leader position. The Epoch Times’ Mark Tapscott reported that Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.), as well as Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Vivek Ramaswamy have thrown their backing to Scott.
President Joe Biden will continue pushing for Ukraine aid when the lame duck Congress returns to Washington, The Epoch Times’ Jack Phillips reported. Trump has pushed for a peaceful end to the conflict, but Jake Sullivan says that the administration’s policy will remain the same as it’s been since the conflict began.
