When Trump took the stage Wednesday to discuss the latest milestone in his effort to reshape the judiciary, it was another event that guaranteed a temporary reprieve from the topic of impeachment. Even as he mentioned the upcoming 2020 election, Trump avoided discussing House Democrats or the party’s presidential hopefuls, many of whom have endorsed the impeachment inquiry.

“This is such a big moment in our history,” he said, claiming that he will take the lead “in terms of [the] quality and quantity” of his judicial appointees “by the time we finish.”

Trump continued, “The average age of my newly appointed circuit court judges is under 50. They’re young, smart and that’s 10 years younger than the average age of President Obama’s nominees.”

That the event happened to come a day after Republicans suffered major setbacks in Virginia and Kentucky — a state Trump won by 30 percentage points in 2016 — also proved to be convenient for the president. As Democratic lawmakers and party strategists flooded the airwaves with claims that Trump’s brand has hurt GOP candidates, the president made sure his support from the Senate Republicans in the crowd was on full display.

“Mr. President, this is one of the many ways you’re helping to make America great again,” McConnell said, after Trump invited him to say a few words.

In his own brief remarks, Graham praised Trump for the “defining moment” when he stuck by Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh after Kavanaugh was accused of sexual assault during his battle for Senate confirmation.

“A lot of people would have pulled the plug on him,” said the South Carolina senator.

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Trump’s record number of judicial appointments could easily become the most enduring aspect of his legacy if impeachment costs him his bid for reelection next November. Not only does the appointment of conservative judges consistently top his supporters’ list of priorities, it is frequently cited by White House allies and GOP candidates as one of the most successful aspects of his presidency. Aided by Senate Republicans, Trump has managed to install a record 157 judges across the federal judiciary — including two Supreme Court justices — and to reverse alleged partisan imbalances in several district courts.

“A number of circuits have flipped from majority-Democratic appointees to majority-Republican appointees. Even the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is getting closer to being even,” said Shackelford. (Trump has made more appointments to the 9th Circuit, which he has accused of handing down “ridiculous” rulings, than any other federal appeals court.)

While Trump marked the latest milestone Wednesday in his appointment of federal judges, the lack of impeachment references marked a noticeable departure from his recent public remarks. During other official events over the past week, the president managed to weave mentions of the House investigation, or of his proclaimed innocence, into his remarks — regardless of the theme of the event.

In Chicago, he accused Smollett of perpetrating “a real big scam, just like the impeachment of your president is a scam.” And when the Washington Nationals visited the White House on Monday to celebrate their World Series victory, Trump quipped that Americans wanted to talk only about baseball and impeachment during their steady climb to the championship series.

Marianne LeVine contributed to this report.