In a dramatic return to one of his most consequential presidential legacies, Donald J. Trump unleashed his first wave of judicial nominees on Tuesday — a bold slate packed with conservative legal firepower, MAGA loyalty, and unapologetic ambition to reshape the American judiciary. The message is clear: the Trump bench is back, and it's loaded for battle.
This announcement comes amid growing tension between the Trump administration and what the former president has dubbed “activist judges.” As Trump posted Wednesday on Truth Social, “Our Court System is not letting me do the job I was Elected to do.” His frustration is palpable. The solution? Stack the courts with judges who share his commitment to constitutional originalism, border security, law enforcement, and unflinching judicial restraint.
Leading the charge is Whitney D. Hermandorfer, Trump’s nominee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. A triple clerk — to Justices Alito, Barrett, and Kavanaugh — she is a rising star among constitutional conservatives. Trump praised her as a “staunch defender of girls’ and women’s sports,” aligning her with the cultural flashpoints of today. Her nomination was immediately blasted by progressive legal groups, but praised by allies like Senator Marsha Blackburn, who called her record “outstanding.”
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti called Hermandorfer’s legal mind “exacting” and her optimism “unshakeable.” Critics, however, wasted no time labeling her appointment “appalling.” But if critics hoped to slow the MAGA judiciary, they were about to be overwhelmed.
Missouri's influence was unmistakable. Trump tapped multiple attorneys from Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s office — a strategic stronghold in Trump’s judiciary blueprint. Bailey proudly declared Missouri was “leading the way in restoring legal excellence.”
Joshua M. Divine, Solicitor General of Missouri and a former Clarence Thomas clerk, was nominated to the U.S. District Courts for both the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri. Trump hailed him as a “true Patriot,” and a vital addition in the battle to “protect the Rule of Law.”
Also nominated were Zachary Bluestone, a hard-nosed violent crimes prosecutor, Maria A. Lanahan, the sharp Principal Deputy Solicitor General, and Cristian M. Stevens, a seasoned criminal division leader. These names represent a tactical deployment of legal minds forged in red-state litigation — grounded, aggressive, and thoroughly constitutionalist.
Rounding out the list is Edward Aloysius O’Connell, nominated to the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. With a 20-year record as a tough-on-crime prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, O’Connell is being positioned as Trump’s answer to the spiraling crime crisis in the nation’s capital. Trump promised that O’Connell will “restore the RULE OF LAW to Washington, D.C.” and “make everyone much safer.”
Unsurprisingly, the backlash was swift. Demand Justice, a vocal progressive legal advocacy group, warned that Trump’s judicial picks are “politically motivated lawyers” handpicked to implement the MAGA agenda from the bench. They argue these nominees are meant to rubber-stamp Trump’s “most controversial and lawless policies,” even accusing them of aligning with the goals of the Project 2025 agenda — a sweeping vision to overhaul federal governance.
Maggie Jo Buchanan of Demand Justice called the list “exactly what we predicted,” decrying the nominees’ “extreme backgrounds” and political allegiances. But for Trump and his supporters, that criticism is more proof they’re hitting the right nerve.