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Dewey's Supreme Court Nominations
Even if Dewey was defeated on ARDA, he still had 2 Supreme Court Vacancies to fill. Dewey understood he needed to nominate moderate-to-liberal justices if he wanted his nominees to be confirmed. First, Dewey nominated Robert La Follette Jr., the former Senator from Wisconsin who had lost his seat in 1946 and the son of Progressive Icon Robert La Follette Sr. to replace Frank Murphy. And to fill the other vacancy in the court, left by the death of Justice Wiley Rutledge, Dewey nominated former Governor of Minnesota and his opponent in the 1948 Republican Primaries, Harold Stassen, who, like him, was an internationalist. Both men were confirmed by the Senate and took their seats that year.

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