10 things you need to know today: July 9, 2018

Trump says he's "close" to settling on his Supreme Court nominee, Thai rescuers lead a fifth boy out of a flooded cave, and more

Trump speaks with the media
(Image credit: JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)

1. Trump 'close' to picking SCOTUS nominee ahead of Monday announcement

President Trump said Sunday that he was "close" to picking his nominee to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. "It's still — let's say it's the four people," he said after spending the weekend at his New Jersey golf club evaluating the top four conservative judges on his short list — Brett M. Kavanaugh, Raymond Kethledge, Amy Coney Barrett, and Thomas Hardiman. Kavanaugh, Barrett, and Kethledge have been listed as the leading candidates for days. Although he was a runner-up when Trump picked Justice Neil Gorsuch to replace the late Antonin Scalia, Hardiman had not received much attention until over the weekend. Hardiman was recommended by former appeals court colleague Maryanne Trump Barry, the president's sister. Trump is expected to announce his decision Monday night.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.