- President Biden planned to nominate anti-abortion GOP judge the day of Roe ruling.
- Biden's intended nomination drew a firestorm of criticism from Democratic officials in Kentucky who were informed by the White House of the president's intentions.
- It is still unclear why the White House did not follow through with the nomination it had planned, nor when it might be submitted.
But the very next day was June 24, when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and ended the federal constitutional right to abortion — effectively banning abortion in Kentucky because of its trigger law.
Meredith's nomination — which hadn't been revealed to the public — was not announced or submitted by the White House.
However, there is no indication it has been rescinded.
The undated email, sent by White House aide Kathleen M. Marshall at 4:16 p.m. Eastern, was obtained by The Courier Journal last week.
It stated: "To be nominated tomorrow:… Stephen Chad Meredith: candidate for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky."
A White House email to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear's office announces that conservative Republican Chad Meredith will be nominated as a candidate for an Eastern … Show moreTHE COURIER JOURNALMarshall did not respond to a request for comment. She is a former lieutenant governor in Nevada who joined the White House last August as senior adviser to governors in the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.
Beshear has said he was told last week of Meredith's coming nomination. Although his office wouldn't disclose the date of that notification, The Courier Journal has established the email was sent June 23.
The Courier Journal filed open-records requests officially seeking the release of the email and corresponding communications between the governor's office and the White House.