There were numerous reports in the national media that Supreme Court prospect and Pennsylvania Judge Thomas Hardiman was in Washington, D.C. on the same night as Judge Neil Gorsuch was named to be President Trump’s pick for the high court.
Such reports heightened the suspense over just who Trump would designate on Tuesday to succeed the late Justice Antonin Scalia.
The problem with these reports, however, is that they were completely false, the White House told Newsmax on Wednesday afternoon.
When we mentioned at the regular briefing for White House reporters that Judge Hardiman "drove to Washington" on Tuesday, Press Secretary Sean Spicer interrupted and said "No, actually he didn't."
"That was misreporting," Spicer told us, "My understanding is that Judge Hardiman never left the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. With all due respect, I can't be held accountable for misstatements that said he was here. He never was at the White House. My understanding is he was in Eastern Pennsylvania for a meeting with another federal judge."
In reviewing the president's dramatic introduction of Gorsuch on national television with the nominee and his wife appearing with him, Spicer said this "was a phenomenal way to introduce Judge Gorsuch to the American people and to the United States Senate."
He added that "we invited Democratic leaders and Democratic members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Unfortunately, none of them showed up."
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