Trump, GOP candidates react to landmark affirmative action ruling.

Supreme Court Ruling: A Victory for Merit-Based Admissions

Former president Donald Trump and other Republican presidential candidates–including two who are ethnic minorities–lauded the U.S. Supreme Court’s historic decision declaring that colleges cannot use race when considering which students to admit.

Because of the ruling nixing this type of affirmative action policy, Trump called June 29 “a great day for America.”

“People with extraordinary ability and everything else necessary for success, including future greatness for our country, are finally being rewarded,” he said in a news release from his campaign. “This is the ruling everyone was waiting and hoping for, and the result was amazing.”

The court’s justices voted on two separate cases, 6-2 and 6-3, to outlaw discriminatory admissions practices at U.S. colleges. The cases involved policies at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina. An appeal has already been filed. The decision forces institutions of higher learning “to look for new ways to achieve diverse student bodies,” The Associated Press said.

Trump, whose statement was also posted on his Truth Social account, said the ruling has global implications. “It will also keep us competitive with the rest of the world,” he said.

Agreement From DeSantis, Too

The former president’s closest GOP rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, agreed the decision was correct.

“College admissions should be based on merit, and applicants should not be judged on their race or ethnicity. The Supreme Court has correctly upheld the Constitution and ended discrimination by colleges and universities,” DeSantis wrote on Twitter.

The decision marks a return to the American ideal that people will succeed based on their strengths, without consideration for racial classifications, the former president said.

“Our greatest minds must be cherished, and that’s what this wonderful day has brought,” he wrote. “We’re going back to all merit-based—and that’s the way it should be!”

‘Fundamentally Wrong’ To Use Race

Fellow GOP presidential hopefuls Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy, both children of immigrants from India, joined Trump in praising the decision.

“The world