Stephen Breyer

Ketanji Brown Jackson Supreme Court Hearing Next Week In Senate Judiciary Committee

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Hearings in the Senate Judiciary Committee will be conducted this week on the nomination of Ketanji Brown Jackson by President Joe Biden for the Supreme Court vacancy created by the soon to be retired Justice Stephen Breyer.

Jackson has been on the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since last year, previously serving on the Federal District Court for DC since 2013.

It is expected that only a few Republicans will support her nomination, but it will be enough to promote her confirmation, as all 50 Democrats are expected to support her.

Another barrier will be broken when Jackson becomes the first African American female justice, long overdue!

Nomination Of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson To Supreme Court A Homerun! :)

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President Joe Biden has hit a homerun with the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court vacancy created by the soon to be retirement of Justice Stephen Breyer.

Jackson has exceptional credentials, and already has been approved by a bipartisan vote last year to sit on the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, where other justices have been members, including Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Clarence Thomas.

Jackson has excellent educational credentials, as well as impressive judicial and legal experience.

But of course, the white supremacists and racists are attacking her appointment, since Jackson will be the first black female Justice in American history to sit on the Supreme Court, a long overdue development.

Her appointment will not affect the right wing conservative balance on the Court, but her age of 51 means she will be likely to serve on the Court for a generation or more, and will witness, hopefully, a more balanced Supreme Court down the road!

Jackson has demonstrated her understanding of the issues of disabiled people, workers, immigrants, freedom of speech, and the concept that a President is NOT a King, regarding Donald Trump!

This is another of the great developments that the Presidency of Joe Biden has brought the nation!

Justice Stephen Breyer Retirement Brings First African American Female Justice In Future!

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Associate Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, with 28 distinguished years on the Supreme Court, announced today in a meeting with President Joe Biden, that he will retire at the end of the Supreme Court term in late June.

Breyer is a very distinguished jurist, appointed by Bill Clinton in 1994, and adding stature and common decency to the Court in the past three decades.

However, Breyer will be 84 this August, and clearly, to insure a Biden appointment to the Court, because of the possibility of a Republican controlled Senate in 2023, it was urgent for him to leave the Court now.

Breyer will be the 22nd longest serving Justice when he leaves the Court, out of a total of 115 Justices in the Supreme Court’s history, so will be in the top 20 percent of all time service.

Biden will appoint an African American woman to be the first on the Supreme Court, a pledge he made when he was running for President, just as Ronald Reagan pledged to pick the first woman for the Court, who turned out to be Sandra Day O’Connor in 1981.

Diversity on the Supreme Court is essential, and will bring youth to the Court, even though the balance of power is still with conservative Republicans with their 6-3 advantage.

It is, however, a moment to celebrate Stephen Breyer, and celebrate another barrier to advancement in the judicial branch, long overdue!

Supreme Court Once Again Stands Up To Presidential Assertion Of Executive Privilege, And Limits It!

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The Supreme Court of the United States for the third time in 48 years has stood up to a President who asserted “Executive Privilege”, and was smacked down by a court including members appointed by the President who was involved in the Court case.

First, we had US V Nixon in July 1974, having to do with Richard Nixon and the Watergate tapes, which the Court unanimously, 8-0, ordered them handed over to the Watergate Special Prosecutor and the House Judiciary Committee. This led within weeks to the resignation of Richard Nixon. Associate Justice William Rehnquist recused himself from the case, appropriately, as he had worked earlier in the Nixon Justice Department, but the other three Nixon appointees, Chief Justice Warren Burger, and Associate Justices Harry Blackmun and Lewis Powell, joined the unanimous decision.

Next, we had Clinton V Jones, 1997, which involved the issue of whether Bill Clinton could be required to testify in a civil trial while in office, a case brought by Paula Jones against Governor Clinton for sexual harrassment. The Court unanimously, 9-0, including his two appointees, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer, ruled that he had to give testimony, and this helped to lead to his impeachment in 1998. So there was no immunity from civil law litigation for acts done before taking office, and unrelated to the office.

And now, we have Trump V Thompson, a lawsuit brought by Donald Trump against the January 6 House Committee investigation of the January 6, 2021 Insurrection, in the name of Chairman Bennie Thompson. So documents to show the series of events leading to the Insurrection are now to be made available to the House committee, as it investigates the wrong doing of the 45th President. This is a major victory, and all three Trump Supreme Court nominees—Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett—voted with the majority 8-1, with only Clarence Thomas in oppostion.

This is a conflict of interest by Thomas, who should have recused himself, as William Rehnquist did in the Nixon case. Since Thomas’s wife was involved in the planning of the January 6 Insurrection, encouraging lawlessness, this should be grounds for removal of Clarence Thomas from the Supreme Court, highly unlikely, but would be appropriate!

The Supreme Court Majority Is Becoming Very Outspoken, Controversial In Actions And Statements!

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The Supreme Court of the United States is supposed to be a nonpolitical body, that balances the law and the Constitution.

Of course, there are, and always have been, so called “liberals” and “conservatives” on the Court throughout its history, but the present Supreme Court with six conservatives and three liberals is badly unbalanced, and it is clear that the Court is the most extreme one sided to the conservative side that it has been since the 1930s, nearly a century ago!

There are three appointments to the Court by Donald Trump (Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett); two appointments by George W. Bush (John Roberts, Samuel Alito); and one appointment by George H. W. Bush (Clarence Thomas).

There are already ethical and moral problems with Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas, regarding their behavior and treatment of women in their past; and Amy Coney Barrett was rushed through to confirmation more rapidly than normal after the sudden death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, so that Donald Trump had one more appointment close to the Presidential election, which should have been left to the winner of the election, which turned out to be Joe Biden.

Also, a majority of the Court was chosen by Presidents who lost the popular vote in 2000 and 2016, although the two Bush II appointees actually came in the second term when Bush II did win the popular vote.

And now, since the horrendous decision to allow the Texas antiabortion law to go into effect without a full hearing, taking away a constitutional right of women to control their own bodies, in effect since Roe V. Wade in 1973, the criticism of the Court’s action has led to Thomas, Barrett, and now Alito to issue political criticisms which are not appropriate for Supreme Court Justices. They should NOT be making public statements, no matter what they are thinking, but they clearly are on the defensive and have politicized the Court by their utterances, as well as their actions.

It is not surprising, therefore, that the reputation and public opinion rating of the Supreme Court has declined radically in the last few years, and particularly in the present year of 2021!

The Supreme Court is moving far to the Right as the nation is clearly moving to the Left, in a nation in which the white majority is rapidly declining, and will be the minority (under 50 percent) by 2045 at the latest.

So a constitutional crisis is at hand, and there is the danger of a future 7-2 conservative Court, with Stephen Breyer refusing to consider retiring at age 83, claiming he does not plan to die on the Court. This is a preposterous statement, and could end up denying Joe Biden any Supreme Court selection if a Democratic Senator dies or is incapacitated, or if the Senate goes Republican in the midterm Congressional Elections of 2022!

The Age Issue In American Politics Endangering Change—Dianne Feinstein, Stephen Breyer!

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A growing crisis in American government is the rapidly aging political class, with a larger number of members of Congress being past 80 years of age, and Supreme Court Associate Justice Stephen Breyer reaching the age of 83 today, August 15.

This is particularly notable with California Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein, who is past 88 years of age, and is clearly demonstrating signs of dementia in many public situations.

Age discrimination is illegal, but once someone reaches past the age of 80, the danger of dementia and other medical issues multiplies, and the issue of Feinstein and of Breyer is alarming, even though so far Breyer shows no signs of decline.

But no government position with such responsibilities should be in the hands of an egotist who never knows when it is time to “pass the baton”, and clearly, Feinstein needs to resign, and Breyer needs to move in that direction before the midterm elections of 2022.

If Feinstein died in office, with the California gubernatorial recall election coming up in September, there is the danger that an extremist Republican hanger-on could end up becoming Governor, and then being able to pick a Republican to replace Feinstein, and making the US Senate switch to the Republican party.

And if Breyer died after an unfortunate majority of the Senate possibly returning to the Republican Party, no replacement would be likely, similar to the Merrick Garland situation and Barack Obama in 2016!

This is intolerable, and there needs to be an understanding that past age 80 or early 80s, it is time for public office holders to leave and allow someone else to replace them, as no one is indispensable, despite their egos!

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer Should Retire, For Secure Survival Of Liberal Wing Of Court

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It was very disappointing news that Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer has announced he has no plans to retire, as he reaches age 83 on August 15.

Breyer has served long and well on the Supreme Court since being appointed by Bill Clinton in 1994.

Already he is one of the longest serving Justices in American history, 25th longest of a total of 115 Justices who have served.

His arguments for remaining on the Court are that he likes being the Senior Justice of the liberal wing, and that his health will determine how long he stays.

But he fails to recognize that health can change rapidly, and when one is in his or her 80s, he or she needs to consider the impact of a sudden death, as with Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s sudden passing, which led to a rapid appointment of a Justice (Amy Coney Barrett) who was rammed through in record time, instead of leaving the appointment to the winner of the Presidential Election of 2020.

With a Court now more conservative and right wing than it has been since the 1930s, it is alarming to think that Breyer is gambling the effect on the liberal wing of the Court by refusing to retire.

Joe Biden should be given the opportunity to replace him, but if even one Democratic Senator dies before 2023, then the Republicans will take control of the US Senate, and prevent any Biden nominee.

And if the Republicans win the Senate in 2022, then Joe Biden will be denied any appointment, even if a vacancy, as Mitch McConnell denied Barack Obama the opportunity to replace Antonin Scalia with Merrick Garland in 2016!

A 50-50 Democratic Controlled Senate Could Any Time Switch To Control By Republicans!

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With the reality in 2021 of a 50-50 US Senate, the ability of the Democratic majority to get the Joe Biden agenda adopted becomes a constant headache, and the inability to adjust the filibuster to allow votes on some issues without a 60 member majority support is infuriating.

And behind the scenes, there are concerns over the distinct possibility that were a Democratic Senator to die or become incapacitated and be unable to vote, such event would literally switch control of the Senate back to the Republicans, and Mitch McConnell.

The Senate has 5 members over 80, and 25 members in their 70s, an all time high such number, and the average age of all Senators is 63, also the highest in the history of the Senate.

18 of these 30 members over 70 and into their 80s are Democrats, so in many respects, the clock is ticking, and it is essential for quick action on a multitude of issues before a possible tragedy occurs.

Also, history tells us that the party NOT in the White House tends to gain seats in the midterm elections that follow, and that portends a disaster for the Democrats, with an evenly divided Senate and only a 6 vote margin in the House of Representatives.

Of course, the tumult around Donald Trump and the “Big Lie” might help the Democrats to gain seats, and history is not a guarantee for the party out of power in both houses of Congress.

But this is certainly a time of concern, including the possible future retirement, although clearly not imminent, of Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer!

The Unpredictability Of Supreme Court Justices Continues!

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The Supreme Court has proved once again that, despite which President chooses them, and their political ideology, that being on the Court has an effect, and causes surprises.

All three of Donald Trump’s appointments (Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett) have surprised on some cases, so while all are conservative in nature, one sees unusual alliances on some decisions, including being on the same side at times with Democratic appointments (Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan) to the Court.

So no President can ever be certain that his appointments will vote the way he might wish, as Trump has seen that his nominees have not sided with him, including on the claim that the Presidential Election of 2020 was “stolen”!

So it is really a case of unpredictability on the future of the present Court, although clearly, it is still the most conservative Court since the 1930s! Even Chief Justice John Roberts, however, is sometimes surprising in his views on cases!

One point is perfectly clear, however, that Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito are the most right wing members of the Court!

Celebrating The Real Meaning Of July 4–Promotion Of Freedom, Equality, And Democracy!

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Independence Day–July 4–is a holiday to celebrate the promotion of Freedom, Equality, and Democracy!

The 245th Independence Day is a sobering day, as the Republican Party is trying mightily to cover up the Fascist authoritarian attempt of Donald Trump and his treasonous and seditionist supporters to destroy the Constitution and rule of law, as they did on January 6, 2021, with the US Capitol Insurrection.

The Republican Party is also trying to destroy the ability of people of color to vote, something enshrined in the Constitution by the 15th Amendment in 1870, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The right wing Supreme Court, with five of the six conservatives appointed by Presidents who lost the popular vote, and the sixth one (Clarence Thomas) accused of sexual abuse, along with Brett Kavanaugh, has also worked to destroy the Voting Rights Act.

And the danger exists that if one Democratic Senator is unable to vote on any legislative action or were to pass away, the possibility of the Democrats losing control of the Senate to Mitch McConnell is a horrifying reality.

And were Stephen Breyer to continue to ignore the need for his retirement from the Supreme Court, to insure that Joe Biden can select his replacement before the midterm elections, the threat exists that the Republicans then, if not sooner, would gain control of the Senate, and we could face a 7-2 Court, instead of a 6-3 Court!

On this 158th Anniversary of the third and last day of that turning point of the Civil War, the Battle of Gettysburg, the tremendous sacrifices of the three day battle which insured the eventual victory of freedom over slavery, let us NOT forget that the battle to preserve freedom, equality and democracy goes on!