Thanks again to The Other McCain for the Rule Five link!
So Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg missed out on opening arguments for the first time in her 26 years on the Supreme Court, due to her ongoing health issues. She’s 85. Excerpt:
Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said the 85-year-old justice is continuing to recuperate and work from home after doctors removed two cancerous growths from her left lung on Dec. 21.
Ginsburg was discharged from a New York hospital on Dec. 25.
Chief Justice John Roberts said in the courtroom Monday that Ginsburg would participate in deciding the argued cases “on the basis of the briefs and transcripts of oral arguments.”
Ginsburg had two earlier cancer surgeries in 1999 and 2009 that did not cause her to miss court sessions. She also has broken ribs on at least two occasions.
The court said doctors found the growths on Ginsburg’s lung when she was being treated for fractured ribs she suffered in a fall at her office on Nov. 7.
After past health scares, Ginsburg has come back to work relatively quickly. In 2009, she was at the court for arguments on Feb. 23, 18 days after surgery for pancreatic cancer.
Ginsburg, one of the Court’s liberals, has been in declining health for a while now. While she certainly has our sympathies, it’s painfully obvious that she’s hanging on by her fingernails because she doesn’t want President Trump to name her replacement.
Think about that. She is reducing the effectiveness of the Court for political reasons.
Here’s the thing: The Supreme Court should not be a partisan body. In an ideal world, it wouldn’t be. But this isn’t an ideal world, and there is a huge ideological chasm between judges President Trump nominates for the Court and the ones Her Imperial Majesty Hillary I would have nominated.
That’s the main reason I voted for President Trump, incidentally, and from conversations I’ve had with conservatives and libertarians, I’ve got a fair amount of company there.
But enough is enough. It’s time for Justice Ginsburg to hang it up. Her family would thank her for it, and the country should thank her for it (although many on the left won’t.) She has had a long and distinguished career, but it’s time. Retire, Justice Ginsburg. It’s time.
