Chicago Judge Among Trump's Top Supreme Court Candidates
(CBS) -- President Trump says he will begin interviewing potential Supreme Court justices today and said he intends to officially nominate his candidate to the nation's highest court in just one week.
Chicago Federal Appeals Judge Amy Coney Barrett is on the short list, but it's unknown whether Trump has met with the former Notre Dame law professor. Another option being considered is appellate judge Brett Kavanaugh.
Justice Anthony Kennedy's retirement takes effect on July 31.
CBS 2's Derrick Blakley takes a closer look at Barrett's personal journey.
Last October, Barrett appeared at a Senate judiciary committee, as it considered her nomination to the U.S. Appeals Court. She was later sworn in at Notre Dame.
She's issued few opinions from the bench during the past seven months, but she's been carefully vetted by The Federalist's Society and the Heritage Foundation, Blakley reports.
"They believe that she will be a very reliable conservative vote," said Carolyn Shapiro of IIT Kent College of Law. "They wouldn't have her on the short list otherwise."
Barrett, a faithful Catholic with seven children, said last year during a hearing that she believes personal religion should never be involved in decisions of the court.
"It is never ever permissible for that judge to follow their personal convictions in the decision of a case rather than what the law requires," Barrett said.
When answering a question from Republican Senator Chuck Grassley during last year's aon whether she would follow Supreme Court precedence when weighing issues on abortion, Barrett told him she "absolutely would."
Shapiro said that answer does not accurately predict what she would do on the Supreme Court.
"The Supreme Court overrules its own precedent, and in fact it did so this term," Shapiro said.
CBS News legal analyst Irv Miller says she could face a rough ride in the Senate, where the republican margin is razor-thin.
"If she believes she can easily change older cases--and I'm speaking specifically about Roe vs. Wade--she is going to have a very rough time," Miller said.
Barrett's husband is an assistant federal prosecutor in northern Indiana.
New York Democrat Chuck Schumer Monday criticized Barrett on Twitter for being too conservative.
The bottom line: Judge Barrett has given every indication that she will be an activist judge on the Court. If chosen as the nominee, she will be the deciding vote to overturn Roe v. Wade and to strike down pre-existing conditions protections in the ACA. #WhatsAtStake
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) July 2, 2018