Trump taps Kentucky lawyer for judgeship after scrapped Biden nomination

WASHINGTON, June 18 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced his intent to nominate Chad Meredith to serve as a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.
He described Meredith, who previously served as Kentucky's solicitor general and has worked as a litigation attorney in Ohio since 2021, as "highly experienced and well qualified."
"Chad is a courageous Patriot who knows what is required to uphold the Rule of Law, and protect our Constitution," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Meredith has held various roles in the legal field in Kentucky, including chief deputy general counsel for the state's governor. He also clerked for a judge serving on the same circuit he's being nominated to, according to his LinkedIn page.
U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell, who represents Kentucky, praised Trump's decision to nominate Meredith to the bench. He called him "an outstanding choice" with a stellar resume and distinguished record of public service.
During his first administration, Trump vetted Meredith for a judicial nomination but later dropped him from consideration, according to The Courier-Journal.
Joe Biden, who succeeded Trump as president, also considered nominating Meredith, who has defended abortion restrictions, but he decided against doing so after progressives and abortion-rights supporters came out strongly against the nominee.
Trump has so far announced 12 judicial nominees in his second term, after securing Senate confirmation in his first term of 234 judicial nominees.

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34 minutes ago

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Musk's suggestion would be for his next model to be trained not on original historical sources, but on Grok's revisions of them - with the erratic tech billionaire's team stepping in to remove 'errors'. Musk posted: 'Far too much garbage in any foundation model trained on uncorrected data.' As tension between the White House and Europe heats up, the Mirror has launched its very own US Politics WhatsApp community where you'll get all the latest news from across the pond. We'll send you the latest breaking updates and exclusives all directly to your phone. Users must download or already have WhatsApp on their phones to join in. All you have to do to join is , select 'Join Chat' and you're in! We may also send you stories from other titles across the Reach group. We will also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose Exit group. If you're curious, you can read our . Trump bitterly complained on Truth Social on Friday that Americans have it too easy, and there are too many federal holidays. "Too many non-working holidays in America. It is costing our Country $BILLIONS OF DOLLARS to keep all of these businesses closed," he said on Juneteenth, a national holiday to mark the end of slavery in America. "The workers don't want it either! Soon we'll end up having a holiday for every once working day of the year. It must change if we are going to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" So presumably he spent Friday with his nose to the grindstone, right? Well, kind of. He flew mid afternoon to his Bedminster resort in New Jersey, where he hosted a MAGA fundraising dinner. Presumably he'll get a round or two in before he returns to the White House this evening. Follow our Mirror Politics account on Bluesky here. And follow our Mirror Politics team here - Lizzy Buchan, Mikey Smith, Kevin Maguire, Sophie Huskisson, Dave Burke and Ashley Cowburn. Be first to get the biggest bombshells and breaking news by joining our Politics WhatsApp group here. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you want to leave our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Or sign up here to the Mirror's Politics newsletter for all the best exclusives and opinions straight to your inbox. And listen to our exciting new political podcast The Division Bell, hosted by the Mirror and the Express every Thursday.