Trump nominates Hermandorfer for Sixth Circuit appeal

President Donald Trump has made his first federal judicial nomination of his second term, selecting Whitney Hermandorfer for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Hermandorfer, currently the director of strategic litigation in the Tennessee Attorney General’s office, has previously clerked for Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and Amy Coney Barrett, as well as served at a major Washington law firm. Trump praised her background as a defender of girls’ and women’s sports and her work opposing certain federal regulations on gender identity and abortion. The nomination has received support from conservative legal groups and Tennessee’s attorney general, who cited her handling of complex, nationally significant cases. Hermandorfer's strong academic credentials include graduating magna cum laude from Princeton and serving as law review Editor-in-Chief at George Washington University. This nomination is expected to be the first of potentially up to 100 judicial appointments by Trump during this term.