Donald Trump's lawyer, Alina Habba, has defended her comments suggesting that Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh will "step up" and rule in favor of the former president in the Colorado 2024 ballot decision.
Speaking to Fox News's Sean Hannity, Habba singled out Kavanaugh as one of the nine justices who should vote on the side of Trump in a potential decision on whether to overturn the Colorado Supreme Court's December ruling to disqualify the former president from running for office in the state.
Trump sent an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court about the historic ruling that said his actions in and around the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. The section states that a person who "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" after taking an oath of office to support the Constitution cannot run for office again.
The Supreme Court, which has a conservative majority including three judges nominated to the bench by Trump—Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch— is expected to take up the case and decide whether the Colorado decision should remain in place or be thrown out.
In her interview with Hannity, Habba said that Kavanaugh should rule in favor of Trump in the Colorado decision as the former president "went through hell" to get the judge to the bench.
"It should be a slam dunk in the Supreme Court. I have faith in them. People like Kavanaugh, who the president fought for, who the president went through hell to get into place, he'll step up," Habba said. "Those people will step up not because they're pro-Trump, but because they're pro-law, because they're pro-fairness, and the law on this is very clear."
Habba was criticized for her remarks on social media, including accusations that she was pressuring Kavanaugh to vote in favor of Trump or suggesting that the judge would decide based on perceived loyalty to the former president rather than the law.
Reacting to the criticism, Habba denied indicating that a decision from Kavanaugh would be based on his apparent allegiance to Trump or that the former president was expecting any return of favor from the judge.
"As I have stated multiple times, the Constitution and law speak for itself and I believe every justice will decide on this clear-cut issue fairly," Habba told Newsweek.
"Left-wing media's attempt to intimidate judges who have been put through rigorous vetting due to who they were appointed by is ridiculous, and that is exactly why I addressed it. This is about the constitution and due process, nothing else."
Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court bench in October 2018 following confirmation proceedings in which he had to defend himself from a series of sexual misconduct allegations, including claims from Christine Blasey Ford, a psychology professor, that he sexually assaulted her at a house party in 1982.
Trump defended Kavanaugh amid the allegations and publicly suggested the women accusing the judge were unreliable. Trump also mocked Ford's versions of events of the alleged assault while speaking at a rally in Mississippi in October 2018, days before Kavanaugh's confirmation.
After Kavanaugh was confirmed to the bench, Trump apologized to the judge "on behalf of our nation" for the "terrible pain and suffering you've been forced to endure" while defending himself against the sexual misconduct claims.
Michael Kagan, a professor of law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, was one of those to condemn Habba for her remarks about Kavanaugh.
"If Alina Habba is right and Justice Kavanaugh feels in any way that he owes Trump and will 'step up,' then she should be sanctioned by the bar for saying this on TV, & thus trying to prejudice a proceeding," Kagan posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Katie Phang, a lawyer and MSNBC legal analyst, posted while sharing a clip of Habba's comments: "Alina Habba saying the quid pro quo part out loud here."
Tim Byrne, an attorney based in Australia, wrote: "Call me crazy, but it's not a great look to openly say that Supreme Court appointments are transactional."
Olivia Troye, who served as a homeland security and counter-terrorism advisor to former Vice President Mike Pence, whose relationship with Trump fell apart in the wake of the January 6 attack, posted: "Don't ever forget that the wannabe mob boss will always cash in on his favors...Habba saying it loud & clear for Justice Kavanaugh."
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
fairness meter
To Rate This Article
About the writer
Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, domestic policy ... Read more
