the "new york times" reporting that mitch mcconnell is backing either two candidates, raymond kethledge or thomas hardeman, suggesting they would have an easier path to confirmation. help us understand the divide in the republican party when it comes to the short list. >> it's the key question, david. you've got to make sure that senators colin and murkowski do not lead. you can't take points off the board. and they will be very hard pressed to vote against either judge kethledge or judge hardeman, i believe. on the other hand, how do you get heidi heitkamp, joe manchin and john tess extra under the most pressure, claire mccaskill? i think it is easiest to lose one of the two republicans with judge barrett, because she's so

it is easiest to bring democrats with judge kethledge.you might have the base spin on hardeman, and on cavanaugh. so that's why i keep coming back to kethledge. >> robert barnes, a question about diversity on the bench. everyone sitting on the supreme court bench right now went to harvard law school or yale. there is some indication the president might be interested in pulling someone from another school. judge kethledge, a wolverine, and judge barrett, of course, went to rhodes college in tennessee, i believe. how important is that? how does that manifest itself on the bench over the years when you have people who have come from different parts of the country or different educational backgrounds? >> well, i think that what you see is when their backgrounds are very different, they are very different. i don't know that what law school they went to made much of a difference. i mean, justice thomas and justi justice sewed my your went to yale. i guess i don't put that much stock in that. the president last time was very proud of justice gor

liz: let's talk about raymond kethledge. raymond kethledge as mitch mcconnell pointed out he is recommended to president trump. there were fewer obstacles to confirmation. rick kavanaugh is big an backing date -- and so as kethledge does not like the federal agency of of senate law. >> here is what rolling back the administrative state means. we have these administrative agents the epa, the fda the fcc. they make a rule and they enforced the rule and they interpret the rule but when the rule is challenged for the equal in court to the challenger or do they have a leg up? are that they have a leg up. rolling back the estate would put them back on a level playing field. liz: the supreme court has hurt more than three dozen cases for it's up coming term. gun control and property rights, gun rights you say are big. >> all four of them except judge barrett. we just don't have that track record yet but on the three we have a track record i'm not kethledge and hardiman are sound on gun rights and property rights. our guest is judge

neil: kethledge was someone rrp mitch mcconnell recommended, what would be the appeal of kethledge?ch. they think alike. they are philosophers as well as legal scholars. neil: can you hang out with us for a while? >> i think i am with you for a while. neil: you are seeing mitch mcconnell talking to chuck grass are you and the very much. have we ever had presidents -- this president did with neil gorsuch. >> this president is a showman. usually the name is put out in a press release. neil: that would be too easy. >> we are going to hear a speech about originalism. it's the idea that the constitution today should be interpreted as it was understood as it was written in 1789. neil: they were in wigs with white powder. >> they wrote it in secret. neil: we'll have more waiting for the president of the united states. ♪ ooh, heaven is a place on earth ♪ uhp. i didn't believe it. again. ♪ ooh, baby, do you know what that's worth? ♪ i want to believe it. [ claps hands ] ♪ ooh i'm not hearing the confidence. okay, hold the name your price tool. power of options based on your budget! and! ♪ we

robert: the finalists are kavanaugh and kethledge and amy coneyrrarrett. t is the youngest at age 46. while both kavanaugh and kethledge are in their early 50's, a sign the president is intent on leaving a lasng legacy. president trump will make a formal announcement on monday. seun minute -- min welcome back. who is the president talking to as he makes the decisio >> the interesting thing is how the white house has handled this confirmation process, he's talking to everyone you couldth k of. he's talking to advisors, members of congress. but up until 9:00 p.m. when we will know who he ultimately picks, trump is going to hold it very close to his vest. it's mirror image to how he rolled out the nomination ofst e gorsuch in january 2017 recall that we had no ce. knew it was down to neil gorsuch and thomas hardyman but we weren't sure until gorsuch appeared on that stage that he picked him to replace justice scalia. robert: he's reading theaps. we know the president reads the prin edition of the newspapers. we can thank him for that. one ori your s looked at

tell fox news he met with kavanaugh on wednesday, on monday and tuesday he met with barrett and kethledge when he was in indiana. heading into the dinner last night, sources told us the president and vice president would compare notes on candidates and as we heard from the deputy press secretary, the pair did talk about monday's supreme court announcement, though, the white house says they talked about some other issues as well. senate democrats are encouraging their supporters, particularly those who are pro-choice and support obama care to hold rallies, make their opinions known and loudly speak out against the president's potential nominee and the people he is considering now. senator schumer previously called on senate republicans to hold off voting on a nominee until after the elections in november. schumer reportedly called the president and asked him to nominate merrick garland, the judge then president obama nominated to replace justice antonin scalia. the candidate republicans of course refused to hold a vote on, citing a presidential election year as their rationale. a source fa

neil: kethledge was someone rrp mitch mcconnell recommended, what would be the appeal of kethledge?orsuch. they think alike. they are philosophers as well as legal scholars. neil: can you hang out with us for a while? >> i think i am with you for a while. neil: you are seeing mitch mcconnell talking to chuck grass are you and the very much. have we ever had presidents -- this president did with neil gorsuch. >> this president is a showman. usually the name is put out in a press release. neil: that would be too easy. >> we are going to hear a speech about originalism. it's the idea that the constitution today should be interpreted as it was understood as it was written in 1789. neil: they were in wigs with white powder. >> they wrote it in secret. neil: we'll have more waiting for the president of the united states. the employee of the year, anna. [music playing] (vo) progress is in the pursuit. audi will cover your first month's lease payment on select models during summer of audi sales event. but it's tough to gete enough of their nutrients. new one a day with nature's medley is th

>> in fact, steve, allies of judge kethledge, raymond kethledge, have been passing on tweets to me today from senator chuck schumer criticizing judge kethledge and they think that could play in his favor if those tweets surface in front of the president on his way to mon tan. >> interesting politicking behind the scenes. thank you. pete williams to you. garrett haake, caitlin huey-burns. appreciate that. just to put in context here we're talking about susan collins and talking about john tester, the math in the senate, democrats come into this fight with only 49 votes if they want to stop a trump nominee they got to flip a republican. they got to hold their side together. and again on the republican side, all the suspense is susan collins. she is the republican expressing publicly potential reservations. if she were to say no to one of these picks, especially on the grounds of roe, would that signal lisa murkowski, the other pro choice republican in the senate. could there be two there. that is balanced against that other really reality we're talking about, these red state democrats, fac

you know, judges hardiman and kethledge both have roughly a decade, i think, that judge kethledge celebratednniversary on the bench yesterday, but without the sort of extra baggage, so to speak, of time in the executive branch. >> yeah. i want to get your take, amy, on a "washington post" report on how religious liberty is the main focus for conservatives. but wouldn't a nominee who speaks out loudly on this issue, wouldn't that person be scrutinized, since abortion rights fall under the umbrella of religious liberties? i would suspect that in talking about this issue, it is mostly focused on amy coney barrett right now and her affiliation with a very, very conservative catholic group called the people of praise organization. >> i think that's right. but as we saw during amy coney barrett's confirmation hearing, going after a nominee too strongly on religious liberties can backfire. the famous line from her confirmation hearing was dianne feinstein saying, the dogma lives loudly within you, because she believed that amy coney barrett's faith might play a role in her judging. and it didn't to

julie: yeah, other top candidates include amy comey barrett and raymond kethledge.e more appealing to the president's base? >> well, amy barrett has track record even from academic writings as law professor and lower-court decisions as being very, very strongly antiabortion. she has not actually said that he should vote to overreturn roe v. wade but in academic writing she wrote that catholic judges, she is one, would have the right to recuse themselves in cases involving things that were against their catholic points of view or sincere beliefs. the death penalty was one example. abortion was another. her record speaks for strongly hinting and aggressive antiabortion viewpoint. julie: how about the fact that she's a woman? liberals attack men who are antiabortion, they argue you're a man and so you shouldn't be making choices for women, so here we have a female judge, a woman, a conservative catholic who say that is a woman should not have the right to choose and abortion should be overturned. i'm not sure she would do that if actually picked. i wonder how much weig

he's meeting with raymond kethledge, that was the longest. sources say the meeting lasted for about 40 minutes. >> ellison barber, thank you. >> you bet. >> a fox news alert peter bridge police officer is being treated for symptoms of nerve agent poisoning. this is related to an incident from earlier this week. when two people in the town of salisbury were hospitalized in critical condition with nerve agent poisoning. kitty logan is live from london. >> hi mike. we do not have confirmation yet that this is the nerve agent that if you think back to march and the incident last week, this has been obviously bold but we do have the hospital in salisbury where the people were brought saying that the police officer is attending the hospital. they do not believe that any one else the hospital and the general public, this individual is now being tested for a possible contact with the nerve agent. let me take you back to the history of this. earlier this year, we saw the attack on a former spy and his daughter. that was concern and it was a nerve agen

at the same time i like kethledge as well.ably my third choice. conservatives overall, i doubt we will be disappointed by anything that donald trump was in front of us as a nominee. >> with cavanaugh you have some decisions on obamacare, that is a big turnoff to a lot of conservatives in the base. for barrett, this is someone antiabortion, a conservative, a catholic. a woman and a young mother. those things could help the image, if you will in washington. and the fact that she is antiabortion, speaks volumes but considering she is a woman. you do not have another man put in the justice or the supreme court ruling that they do not believe women should have the choice to have an abortion when here you have a woman, who was against that. >> that's right. the thing had been telling people is this. it is not judicial activism to restore constitutionalism. and bad decisions don't make good presidents. said that with other caseys. we think roe versus wade dehumanized children. i like to be a woman on the court. i think the left has t

again, between hardiman and kethledge right now the nod goes to hardiman.t's very important because you the two judges who are outside of beltway against bret kavanaugh who is inside the beltway and among those you get hardiman or kethledge. the rumor is hardiman is in the lead between the two. heather: interesting, another person that clerked for kennedy, and that's kavanaugh, what do you think about him? >> well, look, i think judge kavanaugh has been really the odds on favorite to be the pick from the start of this process. this was horse racing, he would have won the first two legs of triple count going into the belmont to win the third. the problem with kavanaugh, he's from washington, d.c., he spent career in washington, d.c., donald trump pledged to drain the swamp, arguably although kavanaugh has written very conservative views is viewed as major conservative, the reality is he is a dc person from inside the belt way and that could be a problem with a lot of supporters of the president that generally speaking doesn't like people inside the belt way

cel us about kethledge. >> so kethledge very experienced.on court of appeals for more than a decade. he has weighed in on a number of hot-button issues like immigration but he's one of the candidates that there's less on him or less background in areas such as abortion or affirmative action, but one thing we know about kethledge, he's known as a real strong fantastic writer and he could join gorsuch as kind of a strong opponent the chevron doctrine, the nonlawyers out there, you know, this is doctrine that requires judges to give difference to the agency decisions and the interpretations of unelected government bureaucrats which is really kind of calls the administrative agencies to run, so we know president trump, you know, has been trying to roll back the administrative state, this could be a strong candidate for him for that very reason. carley: interesting, let's caulk about bret kavanaugh briefly. seemed to be in the lead in the beginning, what do you think about him in. >> well, i think, traditional supreme courtras mays, bret kavanaug

now raymond kethledge is moving up though some say his resume is much thinner.ssment from what you hear? >> well, from what sources are telling us rg that kethledge is not as well known in the conservative movement which is something that i think concerns some people on the right. but at the same time there are concerns of kavanaugh as well a lot of conservatives are worried about his background and his record on healthcare and abortion as well as that he worked with the former bush administration. as we know president 2ru6r7 hates all things bush. with both of them, some areas where the president is a bit uncertain. but he has been, as wee recently as today, talking to aids and seeking advice on both of these candidates. it does look like kavanaugh and kethledge are the most in front, the two front runners. then of course amy coney barrett as well. >> trace: and for clarity, john roberts touched on it, the controversy with kavanaugh that some conservatives believe he set the table, he wrote the road map, if you will, that led to obamacare passing. others say th

kethledge and hardiman have been top picks. and another who with assembled the list of contenders has concerns. >> i think first of all with regard to raymond kethledge and thomas hardiman, they are less known by conservatives. their records are lighter. it may time time. it is important to have people who are well known and distinguished records. >> cnn will carry the announcement live at 9:00 p.m. >> who do you have? >> i don't know. >> i think the president wants a fight which means amy coney barrett. >> there have been a lot of other judicial appointments down the food chain and a lot of young judges. this president is trying to reshape the courts in a conservative way. >> don't rule out hardiman. >>> ahead, a major deadline this week and the process to reunite migrant children with their parents. why the trump administration is asking for more time. next. >>> the justice department and aclu returned to court this afternoon with the government trying to extend the deadline for migrant families at the border. they will not m

that is a big reason why they are highlighting bremen kethledge and thomas hardy made today. the president advisor for the supreme court talk about those issues on abc this week. >> they are all extraordinarily distinguished people. certainly brett, not and coney barrett and ultimately when people like them are nominated you'll see a lot of folks might not with regard to ray kethledge and tom hardiman, they're left on by conservatives and records a little bit later so it might take some time. they've almost no prayer with this confirmation. they need every gop senator to get the president's nominees through. democratic leaders meanwhile are hoping vulnerable democrats and red tape holds strong with the party and vote against the president's nominee. >> each senator understands this is an historic decision in the future of the court for a generation or more. they will look carefully at each nominee. i can't predict how all of my 49 colleagues in the senate on the democratic side will vote. it's a 5049 senate. one republican senator can decide the fate of any supreme court nomi

third, raymond kethledge, he would be a safe choice. though some people say not a particularly exciting one. he's a bit of a character. he likes to go on his play on lake huron that doesn't have phone or internet and be in solitude. the opinions he writes are colorful and very much enjoyed by legal scholars. i'm told the interview with kethledge and the president went very well, lasted longer than the other interviews. and then there's amy coney barrett. this is the candidate that i'm told that is most attractive to president trump because of her strict conservative record and the fact that she would only be the second woman ever appointed by a republican president. here's the drawback. she wrote a paper on the principle of decided law sets precedent and you don't overturn decided law. she suggested that if she believes the supreme court decided something incorrectly, that it should be open to judicial review. a lot of people are going whoa! roe v. wade, she will seek to overturn it. that's why you heard chuck schumer today so adamantly

raymond kethledge. thomas hardiman. susan page, those who are two mitch mcconnell refers, essentially, kavanaugh is too much of a paper trail, and amy barrett would spark a culture war. >> he is associated with the last republican president, right, with george w. bush. who knew that would be a liability with the next republican president? the argument for barrett is the same for and against. she'd spark a culture war. some republicans think it'd be great. the question is, will president trump think that, as well? she's 46 years old. that's an assena her to the court, she's confirmed, she could be there four decades. >> eugene robinson, let me put p -- each one of these has a conservative concern about them. sort of, as susanentioned with brett kavanaugh, it is the bush connections. one calledim the low-energy jeb bush pick. kethledge, i think,is called an open border zealot. barrett iscu thure war. is that good or bad? a seems conservatives have way of killing any of them. >> what are they suppose --what are they lookin

and you wrote about broth brett kavanaugh and as well as raymond kethledge. those being the two most serious contenders that the moment considered by the president. who do you think has the edge here? >> well, kafr gn >> kavanaugh is still the person to beat. amy coney barrett is still in the mix. the president did say on friday that he had whittled the list down to four and probably actually two. so he is sort of giving a few mix the signals. but it certainly seems to be down to kavanaugh and barrett and perhaps kethledge has well. he has been meeting with advisers, he had dinner last night with vice president pence and is going to be looking over his decision as he spends the weekend in bedminster, new jersey where he has property. and, yes, as you said, he will make that call and announce it in a public speech monday night. and sort of dramatic fashion the same way he did with now justice gorsuch. >> and your thoughts, jor s jos. by the way did either of you you pick up on orrin hatch writing about all this and in the second to last paragraph, he reference

and raymond kethledg pete williams tells us more. >> reporter: president trump has apparently narrowed the list to three federal appeals court judges. a source familiar with the process tells nbcews it's brett kavanagh of washington and raymond kethledge of michigan, both formernthony kennedy clerks and amy coney barrett a rmer antonin scalia clerk. >> we can't under estimate how importantenhe second dment is to the president's base. judge kethledge is an avid outdoors man and hunter. >> reporter: kavanaghac some conservative opposition over his time serving in the bush white he says that's a plus. >> be i believe my white house experience made me a more knowledgeable judge essential and also a more independent judge. >> reporter: and barrett a devout catholic is seen as likely to overturn roe v. wade. mike lee despite an endorsement from senator ted cruz of texas who saysee's conservatism would be a sure thing. democrats are still smarting over the senate's refusal two yes ago to even consider esident obama's final nominee merrick garland. senator chuck schumer saysti nomi garland now

and raymond kethledge.s said outright what their position is, but quoted, their use of coated language will send a signal on where they stand. for more, i am joined by heidi briz billa and aaron blake. it is interesting. i think it was david souter who said he never thought of abortion. you said two of these picks have used code language on this. that seems significant. who are the two nominees you are talking about and what is the language. >> at the same time as you point out, many nominees have been cagey about it, and dating back to robert bork. consultants have trained these nominees not to answer the question. but we found there is a good way to read some of this language that lines up with the same language that activist groups for pro-life organizations use like the susan b anthony foundation. two out of the three, kavanaugh and barrett has used the code word. one of them is referring to roe as abortion on demand. we have a number of restrictions on states on abortion past 20 weeks. essentially what

the "other" category, then judge kethledge and then judge hardiman.eporting it is kavanaugh and kethledge who are the final two. amy coney barrett, of course, had the interesting exchange with dianne feinstein when she was first confirmed to her current position. social media reaction, what have we got? smerconish, dershowitz comments are based on the law, not a partisan opinion. you may not like what he has to say, but what he says is law based. i'm not sure, bmac, to which of his particular comments you are referring in particular, but i enjoyed having him here as usual. next, what do we have? smerconish, the reason president obama disappeared is because he is, unlike the current potus, a class act. he knows the people will wake up from this trans one tay and realize they've been duped by a dictator juana be. frank, i was making the point it has to be extremely difficult for him to be disassociated from what is going on, not least of which is dismantling of the affordable care act. it will be interesting to see whether he re-emerges in the fall pert

that could be a raymond kethledge. the vice president has also been involved in conversations with finalists, according to sources. and monday is the big finale of this. and the president likely would stick with that schedule because it would be a primetime media event, a national address. something of this stature, a nominee to the supreme court certainly rises to that level. even if the president decides today, tomorrow over the weekend, there's still a little bit of room before he might unveil it. and then you have the mechanics of once a nominee is notified, you have to get them to washington if they're not already here, et cetera, et cetera. so process is narrowing, certainly a big indicator. but there's still question marks until we know for sure at the latest monday night. >> i want to touch on something here. the president has claimed he's not asking them how they would vote on roe v. wade. it doesn't matter because they've been vetted by the heritage foundation and the senators are going to ask this question.

and then judge kethledge from michigan. he says he enjoys working in his northern michigan cabin alone with no internet connection. that's a little slice of each. we'll have more on them in just a moment. president trump is choosing somebody to fill justice anthony kennedy's seat. he was a swing vote on many issues like abortion rights and gay rights. his retirement means the court will be split. so the president has a chance to give the conservatives a clear majority. as a result, this means that president trump's pick will likely face a very tough confirmation battle on the confirmation florida. the republicans have a razor thin majority. choosing a justice gives presidents a chance to leave a lasting legacy on the united states and affect millions of americans for many years to come. our chief white house correspondent john roberts is on fox's top story and live on the north lawn this afternoon. hi, john. >> good afternoon. breaking news here at the top of the hour. a source with knowledge of the selection process tells

reporting, mcconnell told president trump this past week that judges kethledge and hardiman presented the fewest obvious obstacles to become confirmed. more on the impact on the high court for a generation. pete? >> frances, this will easily be the biggest change to the supreme court in 50 years, and here's why. last year's nomination of neil gorsuch brought in a conservative to fill the vacancy left by the death of scalia, that was a conservative nominep now chooses to succeed anthony kennedy is certain to be more cova kennedy sometimes voted with the liberals on social issues. even so, it's a long shot that the court would overturn roe v. wade, but it may be more likely to uphold state laws that make abortion harder to get, laws that justice kennedy joined with the liberals in striking down. the court is probably not likely to go back to banning gay marriage, but it may approve of businesses that cite religious objections in refusing to serve gay customers, and the court could be more willing to uphold restrictions on voting and affirmative action and school admissions. it's also po

>> no, judges kethledge are all ten-years-plus of opinions. i think barrett probably has the greatest possibility of being rejected by the senate. if you look at the upside on the map, craig, i think judge kethledge gets the nod. because he's from the countryside, not from the capital. extraordinary intellects on both sides. but judge kethledge coming from michigan, you know, michigan undergrad. i don't know him personally, i just know what he's written in his opinions. you go with john james in michigan. you go down to mike braun in indiana. i think the president mentioning gorsuch and kethledge gets much bigger applause certainly in michigan and hunting states than it would if you mention kavanaugh. i don't think you take the risk of barrett right now. so it's one of the ks i think. >> really quickly, the risk of barrett would be what? the greatest risk to appointing her would be what? >> that she doesn't have a record that conservatives are comfortable with at the same time that people are afraid like dianne feinstein that the dogma lives d

raymond kethledge. thomas hardiman and amy barrett. this has sparked concern that legalized abortion could be overturned. kavanaugh said he would follow roe v wade. barrett saying she would not challenge precedent but she could envision the scope of abortion rights changing. kethledge and hardeman have never spoken publicly about their views on the matter. >> reporter: mitch mcconnell has promised a vote on the new supreme court nominee by the fall. stephanie ramos. abc7 news. >> we'll send out a push alert on our abc7 news app the moment president trump makes his announcement. install the app on your mobile devices and sign up for push alerts to get updates on breaking news as it happens. >>> today opening statements begin in federal court in san francisco over a lawsuit involving one of the world's most widely used pesticides. attorneys for 46-year-old vallejo resident lee johnson claim man santo's roundup left him with terminal cancer. he worked as a school grounds keeper for the school district and regularly handled roundup. this i

kethledge and kavanaugh have the most experience. hardiman interviewed the first time, he's somebody who has an appealing background, likes him personally, maybe not the same level of jurist prudential and talent. >> the big fear is someone will be put on the court and then they will become a kennedy or a sutter and go the other direction. all of them were in 20's. sutter and kennedy were appointed 30 years ago. this is a generation, all of the judges are aware of story, they are acutely aware of what scalia represented, this is a different generation of judges and i think they understand and are not going to go there that those are not going to be that optimism. paul: the left to mobilize on president trump's supreme court nominee no matter who it will truecar is great for finding new cars. you're smart, you already knew that. but it's also great for finding the perfect used car. you'll see what a fair price is and you can connect with a truecar certified dealer. now you're even smarter. this is truecar. about every 3 minutes, someo

kethledge is also a former kennedy clerk. he is a midwesterner, university of michigan, he's been on the appeals court there, also well regarded, strong supporter of gun rights and he wrote a book about solitude just last year with an army officer how important it is for leaders to be able to go off themselves and think problems through, he says he does now in his office in a converted barn overlooking lake huron. and thomas hardiman, he served on the third court of appeals where president trump's sister also served and she's put in a good word for him. and then there's the compelling personal story, he's the first member of his family to go to college. whether it's one of those three or two of those three, i don't know. we'll find out, the president seems to be dragging this out for maximum dramatic effect which is of course exactly what he wanted. >> the reality, pete, and correct me if i'm wrong, they all are to the right. it's a very narrow spectrum, a very narrow field and they are all to the right of justice roberts, wh

we have raymond kethledge. he's at the sixth circuit court of appeals. >> ray kethledge, i was on the bush judicial selection committee when we made him a circuit court judge. he's very smart. unlike judge kavanaugh, he went to public school, the university of michigan, which may be appealing to the report. very conservative record. he has written extensively on the issue of the role of law making at the agencies within the deregulatory world that this president is interested in. they may be of interest to the president. >> dana: and a lot of antagonism is around roe v. wade. >> that's right. we go through this process every confirmation where we read every tea leaf that we can find and we try to find something that pins someone down on roe. none of these candidates have said explicitly, you know, anything about roe that would suggest that they're interested in overturning it. there have been writings that have been misrepresented by amy coney barrett -- >> dana: misrepresenting what she wrote. >> yes. she's no

the finalist s were reportedly brett kavanagh, amy and kethledge. mitch mcconnell has been nudging the president in the direction of just two of those candidates. senator mcconnell reportedly told the president that kethledge and hardiman present the fewest obstacles to being confirmed. the times has since reported that the president is expressing fresh interest in hardiman as the process enters its final hours. and here's what trump had to say on his way back from new jersey just this afternoon. >> i'm very close to making a decision. i've not made it official yet obviously. i've not made it final, but we're very close to making a decision. >>> let's say it's the four people. they're excellent, everyone. you can't go wrong. i'm getting very close to making a final decision. i'll probably be decided tonight or tomorrow sometime by 12:00 and we're going to all be meeting at 9:00, and we have a great country, folks. we have a great country. >> a great country. i'd like to welcome in my panel. chief washington reporter boston herald kimberly at kinz. f

kethledge but social media reaction.ot a partisan pan. you may not like what he has to say, about what he said is law-based. i'm not sure, bmac, to which particular comments you are referring in particular. but i enjoyed having him as usual. next, what do we have? smerconish, the reason president trump disappeared is because he is unlike the current potus, a class act. he knows the people will wake up from this trans and realize they've been duped by a dictator wanna be. and it has to be extremely difficult for him to be disassociated from what is going on, not the least chf is the dismantling of the affordable care act and it is interesting to see whether he re-emerges in the fall pertaining to the midterms. i don't think he will. what else do we have? trump wants a woman to help overturn roe v. wade because it would look bad if a bunch of conservative men did it. well that argues in support of judge barrett. i don't know that is the case. i don't know that he is motivated by that issue the way some suspect or ascribe t

hears, similar to what you from the folks who support raymond kethledge, he has a little more of a middle america appeal. he attended notre dame university and, of course, went to law school, at georgetown. this is someone who folks have pointed out has the strong rapport with the president. someone said they really hit it off. you cannot really -- it is hard to know how much that will play in. someonelipside, this is who was floated out there the last time around. and so would hate to be earned -- burned twice. but you have to look at what happened last time around. host: which goes to today's "wall street journal" editorial. a justice with a record. the biggest gamble would be if the president went beyond those three we talked about to choose thomas hardiman of the third circuit court of appeals. hardiman is said to be easier to confirm because he had a hard scramble of bringing. that is the souter trap of putting biography over record. our reading of judge hardiman's opinions as impressive or extensive as those of either judge kavanaugh or judge kethledge. guest: you can read the tween

go to raymond kethledge. by president george w. bush in 2006 but a two-year fight. his home senators, would not move him forward. eventually a deal was made in 2008. he got to the bench. he has marked 10 years. judge amy coney barrett. she had a really tough time in the senate. got through 55-43 but much made about her catholic faith and how serious she was and would be able to make good decisions from the bench because of her faith. a lot of people found it offensive. she would have to not only worry about the democrats but possibly a couple republicans. this president likes a fight and why he shouldn't shy away from nominating here. then thomas hardiman. sits on the same bench as the president's sister. they served together. he drove a taxi to put himself through georgetown law school. he got through 95-0. this was 11 years ago. i us a -- suspect it would be a much closer vote this time. >> bill: why are conservatives worried about some finalists? it was excellent. why is there concern? >> the fact is all o

i think kethledge is a strong candidate.esse: if you were to range the most of conservative to the least conservative. the person you would like to see on the bench the most of, you probably would choose barrett, do i have that right? >> that's right. jesse: all solid picks to replace justice kennedy. >> the best shot one of them probably end up being roberts is kavanaugh. jesse: this new memo we are seeing from peter strzok. i don't know why this didn't come up in the i am g. report or the other requests to turn over these memos and text messages. there was something that said hurry the f up to pressure to probe the trump campaign in the fall of 2016. he's talking about hurrying this thing up, obviously politically and electorally motivated. ways your thinking behind that? >> it's not a shock at all. michael horowitz in that i.g. report suggested peter strzok was making decisions to privilege the timing of the trump investigation above the hillary investigation. they say the reason the hillary investigation was delayed unti

today in particular after this whole process of interviews that the president conducted is raymond kethledge from the sixth circuit that doesn't have the d.c. baggage of kavanaugh. he doesn't have going back to the bush administration and stretching back to ken starr. he has much more experience than amy barrett. he's been on that sixth circuit for ten years now. he could be sort of on the glide path to confirmation if he's the pick. again, the rumor, the buzz, is that as of now, today and this can change, the president really hit it off with kethledge and he could be the new frontrunner. >> molly, a lot of it is personal with the president and how he relates to somebody, both kethledge and kavanaugh clerked under anthony kennedy. >> and he's been successful in the d.c. area and in this environment they're looking for an outsider. there's a little concern about some of cavanaugh's ideas. you look at this point whether we're going to be constitutional and we understand the threats that a bureaucracy that is unaccountable, kethledge is good on that issue. he's done a lot of juris prudence. >>

hardiman and brett kethledge. >> president trump's list includes the best ofepter: thse tv ad already letting airaves with morissete after the announcement. it's all setting the stage for a contentious the confirmation process in the senate. majority leader meitch mcconnel urging the president to peick oe that has the easiest path to confirmation. it could shape the court for decades to come. as the clock ticks closer and, e game oelimination. a producer knocked on the door of one of those final four finalists, judge barrett in indiana and she answered the door. she told the producer she can't confirm or deny anything, but she said, as you can see, i'm here at my house and not in d.c. >> our investigative unit did some digging. back on the list is judge thomas hardiman, considered the runner-up the last time the president announced a justice. brett kavanaugh is also a front runner, graduating from he's been nominated before when george w. bush was in office. the youngest candidate is judge amy barrett. she's also said to be the judge most likely to provoke debate due to her religious

amy barrett, brett kavanaugh, raymond kethledge.ike lee from utah is a potential dark horse. blake burman at the white house with the latest. hi, blake. reporter: the official interviews process is over. now president trump has to do, make the final decision who he wants to nominate to replace anthony kennedy on the supreme court. a big decision indeed. i'm told from a source familiar with the process the president is scheduled, at least his team is gearing up for him to make the decision at some point by the end of the weekend. the president is scheduled to unveil the pick on monday. the nominees, let me tick through them briefly. brett kavanaugh is local here in washington, d.c. he sits on the first circuit court after peals. he was appointed by president george w. bush. those in the bush orbit speak incredibly of him, i'm told would include the 43rd president as well. raymond kethledge was appointed by president george w. bush. amy comey barrett is on 7th court of appeals based out of chicago, she was put there by president trump

barrett and raymond kethledge. the president is on his way to montana rallying candidates to push out democrats in states where he's won. that's not the only item on the white house agenda. the administration confirmed that trump and vladimir putin will have a one-on-one meeting later this month. joining me with the latest is hans nichols. lots to talk about right now. let's start first with the supreme court issue, the idea that the president is looking for somebody with whom he's got chemistry. why is this important to him? >> reporter: well, the president wants to present someone to the public and do it in a dramatic fashion that he feels meets the criteria both intellectually and physical -- the appearance of a supreme court justice. we saw that happen with neil gorsuch. he brought him out. he looked like someone from central casting. we've seen this throughout the trump administration. we also know that trump places a great premium on having a rapport, a personal chemistry with someone. now that said, onthere'

>> that's the great thing about judge kethledge.e candidate for the supreme court is also your most confirmable. the president has someone who is going to fulfill the president's promise for the type of person he puts on the supreme court and someone who is going to sail through confirmation and elections this fall with the wind at our back. judge kethledge is a grand slam as a nominee and will be a rock star in the supreme court because he's the most conservative justice, most committed to the constitution, or would be justice and is also someone who will never back down. >> matthew down eer, you make a very good case. thank you >>> a fox news alert, breaking details on the rescue happening right now to bring young soccer players and their coach out of a deep cave. >>> plus, a cartoonist targets the police portraying them as the kkk. the morning officers are more than pushing back. two members of law enforcement are here to respond live, coming up next. from geico to esurance saved an average of $412. that's auto and home insurance

judge kethledge is an avid outdoorsman and hunter. >> reporter: kavanaugh faces some conservative opposition over his time serving in the w >> i believe my white house experience made me a more knowledgeable judge certainly and also more independent judge. >> reporter: and barrett a devote catholic is popular with evangelicals hoping to overturn roe v wade. not on the short list, mike lee despite an endorsement from ted cruz of texas. democrats are still smarting over the senate's refusal two years ago to even consider president obama's final nominee, garland. center chuck schumer says it would unify the country. the choice will be revealed monday night at 9:00 p.m. at the white house. pete williams, nbc news, washington. >>> now to the race against time at the flooded cave in thailand where a boy's soccer team has been trapped now for nearly two weeks. officials are about to make a critical decision, do they attempt a dangerous rescue mission before monsoon rains return. nbc's bill neely is at the cave with the latest. >> reporter: the world is watching them but they want out. a dozen boys

of the bush era appointee, 51 years old, kavanaugh is 53 years old, like kavanaugh, kethledge clerked for anthony kennedy. conservatives are happy with him, his judicial record is not quite as extensive. i am told at the white house his stock is rising swiftly. judge amy coney barrett is still in the running, but she is meeting tremendous amount of pushback from democrats. how would you not vote for a woman for the supreme court if you are in a state of the president won? regardless of who the president nominates, there will be a fierce battle from democrats because it will tilt the court 5-4 in favor of the conservative. all of the people on the short-list, all the people the president interviewed, all the people on the president's list would do that. listen to senator ben cardin of maryland this morning about his concerns. >> the list that's been prepared from the president comes from a group that has an agenda, that's what's at stake here. it's more than just one issue, it's the whole direction of the court to follow what the president wants rather than what the american people nee

brett kavanaugh, amy coney barrett, and ray kethledge. there are reports that kavanaugh may have the inside track. the president will be flying to europe on wednesday for an annual meeting with the united states' nato allies. president trump has criticizing nato countries for not boosting their defense spending. >> i'll tell nato you have to start paying your bills. the united states is not going to take care of everything. we have $151 billion in trade deficits with the eu. and on autopsy top of that, thes with nato. they want us to protect them against russia yet they pay billions of dollars to russia and we're the schmucks who pay for the whole thing. $30 billion is projected to be paid by those nato nations. but it's not enough. >> a former nato commander says remarks like that raise concerns about the president's willingness to stand with america's allies. >> what nato is looking for is a strong sense that president trump is actually committed to strengthening the nato alliance. it's really upsetting to our allies that he seems to re

barrett, and kethledge.rvative groups have a little bit of a concern with barrett and kethledge in that they haven't been on the bench that long. at least the court of appeals and their record is quote lighter. kavanaugh has the heavier record because he has been on the d.c. court for quite a while. some conservative groups give him marks because of obama ruling he made recent years. he would seem to be, dana, the strongest horse. i'm told if you are looking for a justice in the model of neil gorsuch, kavanaugh would be your judge. >> dana: that's interesting there was another decision that could be coming out of the white house any moment now maybe as we speak about reversing the obama era rule regarding college admissions. do you have anything on that? >> correct. this is part of a broader revision of obamacare-era guidance documents that the department of justice has been undertaking. and they will rescinding a number of them this afternoon. this particular guidance encouraged the consideration of race in