Former Texas Supreme Court Justice, and now 5th Circuit Judge, Don Willett has been a favorite of conservatives and libertarians for a long time.
Prof. Glenn Reynolds recently commented:
Who would I pick from Trump’s list? (And note how unprecedentedly transparent and helpful it is to have a president with such a list.) My personal first choice would be former Texas Supreme Court Justice and 5th Circuit Judge Don Willett. Writing in Patel v. Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Willett quoted Frederick Douglass’ joy on receiving the first money he earned as a free man and observed, “Douglass’ irrepressible joy at exercising his hard-won freedom captures just how fundamental — and transformative — economic liberty is. Self-ownership, the right to put your mind and body to productive enterprise, is not a mere luxury to be enjoyed at the sufferance of governmental grace, but is indispensable to human dignity and prosperity.” There are, sadly, few other judges who understand this.
And Willett knows about such things. As I’ve argued in my recent book, “The Judiciary’s Class War,” the current Supreme Court is a monoculture of Ivy League “thoroughbreds” with elite backgrounds. There’s nothing wrong with that, but a little variety would be nice. Willett offers some.
After his father died when Willett was 6, his mother supported the family by waiting tables at a truck stop. He attended Baylor University and Duke — first-rate schools, but a change from the Harvard/Yale monoculture that currently fills the court. And like many previous justices but no current ones, he has actually run for office. A first-rate mind with a background that reflects Trump’s America, Willett seems like a great choice to me.
Kemberlee is a YUGE fan of Willett’s Twitter feed, including these gems:
Willett’s Twitter feed raised the ire of Democrat Senators when he was nominated for the 5th Circuit based on this tweet, Aging, humorless Dem Senator rips judicial nominee Don Willett over Bacon Marriage tweet:
Whether Willett is Trump’s choice is something we’ll find out soon. I’m doubtful he would get the nod at this point.
But the investigative journalists at ABC News are on the case, just in case. And they want you to know that there is something “odd” about a Judge who is so damn funny, From Twitter fingers to judicial decisions: Examining a potential SCOTUS nominee’s odd social media habits:
On New Year’s Eve, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Don Willett channeled Rick Astley by tweeting “People of Earth—In 2018, @JusticeWillett will never: give you up, let you down, run around, desert you, make you cry, say goodbye, tell a lie, hurt you.”
Wait a second, that is a seriously funny and witty tweet. Looks like Judge Willett Rick-rolled ABC News:
But wait, ABC News has more:
Before that, Willett, at the time a justice on the Supreme Court of Texas, tweeted out his son confusing “Eminem” and “eminent,” a picture of three puppies and a picture of cornbread shaped like his home state.
This could be a problem, ABC News assures us:
But with Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy announcing his retirement on Wednesday, and Willett’s name appearing on a list of Trump’s potential Supreme Court nominees, the judge’s frequent tweeting last year raises questions of judicial impartiality….Willett hasn’t tweeted since joining the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals at the beginning of this year, but it remains to be seen whether or not his tweets will interfere with any potential nomination.
Okay, here’s the deal-breaker on Willett, a tweet included in the ABC News report:
What kind of sicko bakes cornbread in the shape of Texas?
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