Washington (CNN) Rep. Kevin Cramer, a Republican running for the Senate in North Dakota, said last week he advised President Donald Trump not to be pressured into making his Supreme Court nomination "some sort of affirmative action pick."

The comments by Cramer, who is challenging Democratic Sen. Heidi Heitkamp in one of the marquee Senate races of November's midterm elections, came Friday on KTGO-AM's "The Morning Lowdown" with host Dennis Lindahl

In the interview, Cramer said he was with Trump on June 27, hours after Justice Anthony Kennedy announced he was retiring -- a move that gives Trump the opportunity to tip the nine-member court's balance in conservatives' favor for potentially years to come. Trump was in North Dakota that day for a campaign rally for Cramer.

"It was an exciting day to be with the President, and he asked right out front, 'Do you have any preferences?'" Cramer said. "I said my only preference would be, don't succumb to the pressure to make this some sort of an affirmative action pick."

"Make sure you pick a good, solid conservative and cement this 5-4 conservative majority that we have, based on a judge's or a lawyer's judicial demeanor or philosophy," Cramer said.

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