COURT CHARADE Pick made ‘months ago’ in a favor to Kennedy

It wasn’t a split decision.

President Trump’s nomination of Brett Kavanaugh for the nation’s highest court may have been months in the making — and an effort to appease retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, according to sources and reports.

Kavanaugh met with Republican lawmakers Tuesday as he prepares for a contentious confirmation battle.

But the conservative jurist’s path to replacing the man he once clerked for began well before the President’s made-for-TV decision.

While Trump did his best over the past two weeks to keep his choice under wraps, there are indications from those close to the President and several reports that the pick was made months ago.

A source close to Trump’s inner circle told the Daily News that Kennedy’s connections to Trump helped pave the way for Kavanaugh’s nomination.

While there were no direct efforts to force Kennedy to step down, there were vague assertions made that should he retire, his seat would go to someone he knew and trusted.

“There was not a firm understanding, but from what I’ve heard, the understanding was that the President would be more sympathetic to appointing a replacement that would be consistent with his desires and choices,” the source said. towar Kavanaug , ut a meeting with Kennedy during which the jurist informed him of his retirement at the White House was the deciding factor, Politico reported Tuesday.

Kennedy “left the impression with Trump that Kavanaugh would be a great candidate for the job,” the site reported. s ps etween t e Trump and Kennedy families have raised eyebrows.

Kennedy’s son Justin has close ties to the Trump family and was in charge of the real estate division of Deutsche Bank at a time when the investment firm loaned the Trumps more than $1 billion.