Rappers seem to love this White House
Trump world continues to build its unique connection to artists in the rap world, as “Seen, Heard & Whispered” has learned that Grammy-winning artist Nelly will give a special performance at the Executive Branch, the Washington club owned by President Trump’s eldest son, Don Jr.
The show is for club members — who reportedly pay about $500,000 to join the exclusive Georgetown establishment — and will take place April 24, the night before the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
Nelly is known for hits “Air Force Ones,” “Hot in Herre” and “Country Grammar.”
Akon, another rapper, performed at an invite-only party following the premiere of “Melania,” the documentary on first lady Melania Trump.
And the president has forged a fascinating relationship with Nicki Minaj, yet another rapper, who appeared at the White House in January to back the new Trump savings accounts for children. Ms. Minaj called herself the president’s No. 1 fan.
During his first term, Mr. Trump hosted Kanye West at the White House, where the rapper wore a red Make America Great Again hat and opined on everything from sentencing reform to the president’s “male energy.”
Trump, Senate ready for potential Supreme Court vacancy
If a Supreme Court retirement occurs this year, Republicans will be ready to push a Trump pick through the Senate, according to Sen. Charles E. Grassley, the man who would oversee the confirmation process.
Mr. Grassley, the Senate’s senior lawmaker and chairman of the Judiciary Committee, has two suggestions for whom President Trump should pick if Justice Clarence Thomas or Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. leaves the bench.
“If he does retire, I’m going to suggest that either [Sen. Mike] Lee or [Sen. Ted] Cruz be put on the Supreme Court,” the Iowa Republican told reporters.
Court watchers think there’s a greater-than-usual chance of a retirement this year from among the six Republican appointees, given the questions about whether the GOP will still control the Senate — and thus be able to push through a Trump nominee — after November’s elections.
Justices Thomas, 77, and Alito, 76, are most frequently mentioned as possible retirees.
Mr. Trump praised both justices this week, but the 79-year-old president also wondered if it might be politically advantageous for the older members to go.
“There’s a theory, you reach a certain age and you give up your seat when you have the president,” he told Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo.
He specifically cited the case of the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who drew ire from Democrats for not retiring while President Obama was in office. She died in the final months of Mr. Trump’s first term, giving him a third pick for the high court and cementing the current 6-3 GOP nominee advantage.
The president said if a vacancy does occur, he’s ready to name a replacement.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, South Dakota Republican, said Republicans would move quickly to fill any vacancy should one arise.
“That’s a contingency I think around here you always have to be prepared for. And if that were to happen, yes, we would be prepared to confirm,” Mr. Thune said Tuesday.
While Mr. Cruz, a former solicitor general from Texas, has long been mentioned as a possibility, he dismissed the idea this week.
“I have been blessed to be involved in the nomination, confirmation of many of them, and I intend to be deeply involved, but I don’t intend to be one of them,” Mr. Cruz told reporters.
What drives the Supreme Court?
Sharply divided rulings in big cases out of the Supreme Court don’t tell the entire story, argues Sarah Isgur in her new book, “Last Branch Standing.”
She says that despite the 6-3 split between GOP and Democratic appointees, the high court often makes strange bedfellows. She urged her readers to look beyond the party affiliations when analyzing what the justices are doing.
Ms. Isgur says the bigger divide is often between institutionalists and those ready to test the traditional structures.
Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh was in attendance at a book party Sunday, hosted at the home of ABC journalist Martha Raddatz and retired NPR journalist Tom Gjelten.
Mr. Gjelten said the work was timely, given the “turbulence between the branches.”
Ms. Isgur hosts “Advisory Opinions,” a legal podcast, serves as an editor at SCOTUSBlog and is an analyst for ABC News.
She earned a law degree from Harvard University and clerked for Judge Edith Jones on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Ms. Isgur also was spokeswoman for the Justice Department early in the first Trump administration.
She made clear her book touches on the human side of law, too — such as spotlighting a man who won a clerkship by bragging about his ability to play video games.
“Hopefully, that gives you some flavor of the book,” she told partygoers.
