Alito Reportedly Won't Retire Now as Democrats' Senate Win Narrows GOP Window for Court Pick

Justice Samuel Alito, 76, has told people close to him that he does not plan to retire immediately from the Supreme Court, despite Democrats' strong showing in Senate races on Tuesday, the New York Times and Bloomberg reported. Two people close to the justice, speaking anonymously, said he shared his plans with friends once the results were clear this week and that the outcome has not changed his intentions. Republicans will control the Senate only a short time longer, so the lame-duck session before January is likely President Donald Trump's last chance to get a nominee confirmed, according to the Washington Post. Speculation had centered on Alito and Justice Clarence Thomas stepping down so Trump could name a fourth or even fifth justice. Senate Republican leader John Thune said he would not rule out a lame-duck Supreme Court confirmation, saying it "can be done" in the roughly 60 days after the election.

The right-leaning Townhall leads with Thune's remarks, treating his lame-duck idea as a problem and attacking him over the filibuster and the Save America Act. It warns that Democratic majorities threaten the conservative court and that Alito will probably have to rethink retirement, without reporting his reported decision in its opening. On the left, the Washington Post frames GOP losses as raising pressure on conservative justices to retire, and Raw Story's headline says conservatives fear the Alito and Thomas gamble is a ticking time bomb. Both sides agree the Republican window to fill a seat is closing; the right dwells on Thune and party blame, the left on pressure on the justices. Reason, an alternative outlet, stands apart by stressing that a lame-duck vacancy should not be expected.