Former President Donald Trump has expressed uncertainty about whether the Supreme Court justices he appointed will rule in his favor in an upcoming case. The high court recently agreed to hear Trump’s appeal regarding a Colorado court decision that deemed him ineligible to appear on the state’s ballot.
During an election campaign rally in Iowa, Trump suggested that the Republican-appointed justices might go “out of their way to be fair and unbiased” to the point of potentially hurting him. He contrasted this with his belief that the “radical left Democrats” — a reference to the Democrat-appointed justices — would vote against him from the start. In making such claims, Trump emphasized his desire for fairness in the upcoming ruling.
“When you are a Republican judge, and you’re appointed by, let’s say, Trump, they go out of their way to hurt you so that they can show that they have been fair — fair, honorable people,” Trump said during the rally. “It’s an amazing difference. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
The former president also made a reference to Bobby Knight, a renowned college basketball coach who was known for his fiery temperament on the court, stating, “The other side plays the ref like Bobby Knight.”
Trump’s appointees to the Supreme Court, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett, have created a conservative majority on the bench. Now, the same Supreme Court will decide on Trump’s eligibility to run for office again. The case revolves around Trump’s actions during the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, with Colorado citing the insurrection clause of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment to argue that he is ineligible.
According to legal experts, the case is not straightforward, regardless of the justices’ typical leanings. They anticipate that the conservative justices may initially approach the case with skepticism, while liberals may take a different stance. Some experts believe the justices will focus on issues of federalism and state’s rights, rather than whether Trump is guilty of insurrection.
The Supreme Court is set to expedite its ruling, with oral arguments scheduled for Feb. 8.
This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
