Speed Reads

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This potential Supreme Court nominee already has thoughts on whether presidents should be investigated

The Supreme Court may have to make some highly anticipated decisions on abortion rights, health care, and even the Russia investigation in the relatively near future. And with retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy's swing vote gone, the newest justice could be a decision maker in all of them.

When it comes to Russia, one of President Trump's potential appointees, D.C. Court of Appeals Judge Brett Kavanaugh, already has some thoughts about presidential investigations, The New York Times points out. Kavanaugh wrote in 2009 that former President Bill Clinton shouldn't have been investigated while in office because indicting sitting presidents distracts from their everyday duties, "especially in times of financial or national-security crisis."

Trump told reporters Thursday he's considering "four people" for the SCOTUS job, per Bloomberg, and Kavanaugh has been widely reported as one of them. The D.C. judge worked on the Clinton investigation and helped author the report spelling out possible impeachment charges for the former president. Trump advisers reportedly told the president about Kavanaugh's views, but said it won't play a big role in the judge's potential nomination, the Times says. But you can expect Democrats to bring this up during a confirmation hearing.