If Kennedy retires, Donald Trump’s legacy is set

Chris Cillizza
Analysis by Chris Cillizza, CNN Editor-at-large
Updated 9:21 AM EDT, Mon June 26, 2017
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 12: Members of the Supreme Court, (L-R) Chief Justice John Roberts and associate justices Anthony Kennendy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, John Paul Stevens, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, applaud as U.S. President Barack Obama arrives to deliver his State of the Union speech before a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol February 12, 2013 in Washington, DC. Facing a divided Congress, Obama focused his speech on new initiatives designed to stimulate the U.S. economy and said,
PHOTO: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images North America/Getty Images
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 12: Members of the Supreme Court, (L-R) Chief Justice John Roberts and associate justices Anthony Kennendy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, John Paul Stevens, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, applaud as U.S. President Barack Obama arrives to deliver his State of the Union speech before a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol February 12, 2013 in Washington, DC. Facing a divided Congress, Obama focused his speech on new initiatives designed to stimulate the U.S. economy and said, 'It?s not a bigger government we need, but a smarter government that sets priorities and invests in broad-based growth'. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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(CNN) —  

The final week of the Supreme Court session opens Monday, and with it comes rampant speculation that Justice Anthony Kennedy may call it quits.

If Kennedy does announce his retirement, it would almost certainly ensure not only a clear rightward swing in the Court but would also cement a major part of Donald Trump’s legacy barely five months into his first term.

The best days Trump had on the campaign trail were all centered on the Supreme Court. His May release of a list of 11 people he would nominate to fill the opening created by the death of Antonin Scalia served as a major rallying point for GOP primary voters still wary of backing someone who was a very recent convert to their way of thinking.

Judge Neil Gorsuch (C) and his wife Marie Louise look on, after US President Donald Trump nominated him for the Supreme Court, at the White House in Washington, DC, on January 31, 2017. Trump named Judge Neil Gorsuch as his Supreme Court nominee. / AFP / Brendan SMIALOWSKI
PHOTO: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Judge Neil Gorsuch (C) and his wife Marie Louise look on, after US President Donald Trump nominated him for the Supreme Court, at the White House in Washington, DC, on January 31, 2017. Trump named Judge Neil Gorsuch as his Supreme Court nominee. / AFP / Brendan SMIALOWSKI

Related Article Trump's awkward trip to the Supreme Court

When his campaign was flagging last fall, Trump returned to a familiar strategy – putting out a wider list of 21 names he might choose to be the next member of the nation’s highest court.

And Trump’s single best day as president came on February 1 when he announced Neil Gorsuch as his pick to replace Scalia.

Why was the Court Trump’s biggest crutch with Republican voters both during the campaign and now? Just ask him!

“If you really like Donald Trump, that’s great, but if you don’t, you have to vote for me anyway,” Trump told GOP voters in Iowa almost a year ago. “You know why? Supreme Court judges, Supreme Court judges. Have no choice, sorry, sorry, sorry. You have no choice.”

Anthony Kennedy, the longest-serving member of the current Supreme Court, has announced that he will be retiring at the end of July. Kennedy, 81, was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. He is a conservative justice but has provided crucial swing votes in many cases.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Eric Thayer/Getty Images
Anthony Kennedy, the longest-serving member of the current Supreme Court, has announced that he will be retiring at the end of July. Kennedy, 81, was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. He is a conservative justice but has provided crucial swing votes in many cases.
Kennedy was born in Sacramento, California, on July 23, 1936. In this photo, circa 1939, he sits between his mother, Gladys, and his sister, Nancy.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Courtesy of Dana Smith
Kennedy was born in Sacramento, California, on July 23, 1936. In this photo, circa 1939, he sits between his mother, Gladys, and his sister, Nancy.
Kennedy wears his Cub Scout uniform as he poses with his brother, Tim, circa 1946.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Courtesy U.S. Supreme Court
Kennedy wears his Cub Scout uniform as he poses with his brother, Tim, circa 1946.
Kennedy, third from right in the front row, stands with other Cub Scouts in the 1940s.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Sacramento Bee/ZUMAPRESS
Kennedy, third from right in the front row, stands with other Cub Scouts in the 1940s.
Kennedy, right, spent time with the California Army National Guard after finishing law school in 1961. The man on the left, John J. Hamlyn Jr., also became a lawyer like Kennedy.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Sacremento Bee/Zumapress
Kennedy, right, spent time with the California Army National Guard after finishing law school in 1961. The man on the left, John J. Hamlyn Jr., also became a lawyer like Kennedy.
Kennedy, right, and Hamlyn pose for a photo after basic training.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Sacramento Bee/ZUMAPRESS
Kennedy, right, and Hamlyn pose for a photo after basic training.
After more than a decade as a lawyer, Kennedy became a judge on the US Court of Appeals in 1975. He was nominated by President Gerald Ford on the recommendation of California Gov. Ronald Reagan.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Owen Brewer/Sacramento Bee/Zumapress
After more than a decade as a lawyer, Kennedy became a judge on the US Court of Appeals in 1975. He was nominated by President Gerald Ford on the recommendation of California Gov. Ronald Reagan.
This courtroom photo of Kennedy was taken in 1976.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Courtesy of McGeorge School of Law
This courtroom photo of Kennedy was taken in 1976.
Kennedy has breakfast with his wife, Mary, and his son Gregory in 1984.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Frank Stork/Sacramento Bee/ZUMAPRESS
Kennedy has breakfast with his wife, Mary, and his son Gregory in 1984.
Kennedy and his wife walk together in Sacramento, California, in 1987.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Dick Schmidt/Sacramento Bee via ZUMA Wire/ZUMAPRESS
Kennedy and his wife walk together in Sacramento, California, in 1987.
From 1965 to 1988, Kennedy was also a professor of constitutional law at the University of the Pacific
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Frank Stork/Sacramento Bee/ZUMAPRESS
From 1965 to 1988, Kennedy was also a professor of constitutional law at the University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law.
In 1987, Kennedy was nominated by President Reagan to fill the Supreme Court seat vacated by Lewis Powell
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Getty Images
In 1987, Kennedy was nominated by President Reagan to fill the Supreme Court seat vacated by Lewis Powell's retirement. The nomination came after the confirmation failures of nominees Robert Bork and Douglas Ginsburg.
Kennedy, center, talks with US Sens. Ted Kennedy, left, and Joe Biden before a confirmation hearing in Washington. The two Kennedys are not related.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Doug Mills/AP
Kennedy, center, talks with US Sens. Ted Kennedy, left, and Joe Biden before a confirmation hearing in Washington. The two Kennedys are not related.
Kennedy meets with President Reagan in the Oval Office.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: White House Photo
Kennedy meets with President Reagan in the Oval Office.
Kennedy is joined by his wife as he is sworn in by Chief Justice William Rehnquist on February 18, 1988. Reagan is on the right.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Bettmann/Getty Images
Kennedy is joined by his wife as he is sworn in by Chief Justice William Rehnquist on February 18, 1988. Reagan is on the right.
Kennedy, top right, appears in a formal Supreme Court portrait in April 1988. In the front row, from left, are Thurgood Marshall, William Brennan Jr., Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Byron White and and Harry Blackmun. In the back row, from left, are Antonin Scalia, John Paul Stevens, Sandra Day O
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Bob Daugherty/AP
Kennedy, top right, appears in a formal Supreme Court portrait in April 1988. In the front row, from left, are Thurgood Marshall, William Brennan Jr., Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Byron White and and Harry Blackmun. In the back row, from left, are Antonin Scalia, John Paul Stevens, Sandra Day O'Connor and Kennedy.
Kennedy speaks at the McGeorge School of Law in 1991. He delivered the inaugural address in a lecture series named for the late Archie Hefner, whose portrait is behind Kennedy. Hefner was a prominent Sacramento attorney active in numerous civic and charitable groups. He died in 1988.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Owen Brewer/Sacramento Bee/Zumapress
Kennedy speaks at the McGeorge School of Law in 1991. He delivered the inaugural address in a lecture series named for the late Archie Hefner, whose portrait is behind Kennedy. Hefner was a prominent Sacramento attorney active in numerous civic and charitable groups. He died in 1988.
Kennedy is on the far right in this Supreme Court portrait from 1998. In the front row, from left, are Antonin Scalia, John Paul Stevens, Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Sandra Day O
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: AFP/Getty Images
Kennedy is on the far right in this Supreme Court portrait from 1998. In the front row, from left, are Antonin Scalia, John Paul Stevens, Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Sandra Day O'Connor and Kennedy. In the back row, from left, are Ruth Bader Ginsburg, David Souter, Clarence Thomas and Stephen Breyer.
In 2004, Kennedy speaks to high school students at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: DAVE GETZSCHMAN/AP
In 2004, Kennedy speaks to high school students at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California.
Kennedy speaks during a Senate subcommittee hearing in 2002.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Mark F. Sypher/CQ-Roll Call Group/Getty Images
Kennedy speaks during a Senate subcommittee hearing in 2002.
Kennedy discusses the court
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Win McNamee/Getty Images
Kennedy discusses the court's budget requests with a House committee in April 2005.
Kennedy participates in a panel discussion in Washington in November 2005.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: David Scull/Bloomberg/Getty Images
Kennedy participates in a panel discussion in Washington in November 2005.
Kennedy receives an honorary degree at New York University in May 2006.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images
Kennedy receives an honorary degree at New York University in May 2006.
Kennedy delivers the commencement address at New York University.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: MARILYNN K. YEE/New York Times/Redux
Kennedy delivers the commencement address at New York University.
In February 2007, Kennedy testifies at a Senate committee hearing on judicial security and independence.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Ken Cedeno/Bloomberg/Getty Images
In February 2007, Kennedy testifies at a Senate committee hearing on judicial security and independence.
Kennedy testifies before a House subcommittee in March 2007. He and fellow Justice Clarence Thomas spoke about concerns with the ongoing remodeling of the court building, the reduction of paperwork due to electronic media, and the disparity of pay between federal judges and lawyers working in the private sector.
Photos: Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
PHOTO: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Kennedy testifies before a House subcommittee in March 2007. He and fellow Justice Clarence Thomas spoke about concerns with the ongoing remodeling of the court building, the reduction of paperwork due to electronic media, and the disparity of pay between federal judges and lawyers working in the private sector.
The Supreme Court meets with President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden in September 2009. From left are Samuel Alito, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Kennedy, John Paul Stevens, Chief Justice John Roberts, Obama, Sonia Sotomayor, Biden, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, Stephen Breyer and retired Justice David Souter.