|
 Srinivasan, 48, has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia Circuit since he was confirmed on a 97-0
bipartisan vote in the U.S. Senate in May 2013. Republican senators
who supported him then would likely be asked to justify why they
couldn't back him for the Supreme Court.
Many names are likely under consideration and the White House has
not tipped its hand, but recent Supreme Court appointments have
tended to be appeals court judges and the appeals court in
Washington on which Srinivasan serves has often been a springboard
to the high court. Scalia himself served on the court, as did other
Supreme Court members Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Clarence
Thomas and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The White House said on Sunday that Obama will wait until the U.S.
Senate is back in session before making a nomination. The Senate
returns from recess on Feb. 22.
Republicans have called for Scalia's seat to remain open so that the
next president, who would take office in January 2017, can nominate
a replacement. Other judges Obama could consider appointing include
Paul Watford, a black man who serves on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court
of Appeals, and Jacqueline Nguyen, a Vietnamese-American woman who
serves on the same court as Watford.
 Little is known about Srinivasan's views on divisive social issues
like abortion and affirmative action. But as a senior Justice
Department lawyer in 2013, he was part of the legal team that
successfully urged the high court to strike down the Defense of
Marriage Act, a law that restricted the definition of marriage to
heterosexual couples for the purposes of federal benefits. The
ruling helped pave the way for the court's ruling in June 2015 that
legalized gay marriage nationwide.
Srinivasan could not be reached for comment.
REPRESENTED EXXON, RIO TINTO
In private practice, prior to his appointment to the appeals court,
Srinivasan successfully represented former Enron Corp CEO Jeff
Skilling in a Supreme Court case. The Supreme Court narrowed the
reach of the so-called honest services fraud law, invalidating one
theory used by prosecutors for Skilling's conspiracy conviction and
ordering further appeals court review. Despite the high court
ruling, Skilling's conviction was later upheld by an appeals court.
Srinivasan also represented Exxon Mobil Corp in a lawsuit alleging
human rights abuses in Indonesia, and mining giant Rio Tinto in a
similar case about its activities in Papua New Guinea. Both cases
concerned in part whether a law called the Alien Tort Statute allows
such cases to be heard in U.S. courts. The Exxon case is still
ongoing. The Rio Tinto lawsuit was dismissed.
[to top of second column] |
His work during two stints with the O'Melveny and Myers law firm
prompted expressions of concern from liberal groups and unions that
normally back Democratic judicial nominations when he was nominated
to the appeals court in 2012.
He has had a lengthy career in public service, serving in the
Justice Department during both the Obama and George W. Bush
administrations. Under Bush he had a junior role, while under Obama
he was a political appointee serving as the top deputy to the
solicitor general.
Srinivasan was born in Chandigarh, India and grew up in Lawrence,
Kansas, where his father was a professor at the University of
Kansas. If appointed, he would be the first Indian-American to serve
on the Supreme Court.
He played basketball in high school and then attended Stanford for
undergraduate, business and law degrees, yet never lost his
allegiance to the University of Kansas Jayhawks. That was a theme of
the judicial dignitaries that saluted him at his 2013 investiture
for the appeals court, as was the fact that when he was an advocate
before the Supreme Court, he carried in his pockets for good luck
the socks his twin son and daughter wore when they were newborns.
Srinivasan's bipartisan credentials are lengthy. He was a law clerk
to Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, now retired, a 1981
appointee of Republican President Ronald Reagan. At Srinivasan's
confirmation hearing, he was backed by conservative Texas Republican
Senator Ted Cruz, who is now running for president.
"We have been friends a long time, so I am hopeful that our
friendship will not be seen as a strike against you by some," Cruz,
who is known for having tense relationships with Senate colleagues,
joked at the time.
A spokesman for Cruz said the senator would not be commenting on any
possible Obama nominee, reaffirming that Cruz believes the
nomination should be left to the next U.S. president.
(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley and Joan Biskupic; With Reporting by
Jeff Mason; Edited by Martin Howell)
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
