The blawgosphere is roiling this morning over US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s off-handed remark on Friday that there may soon be a vacancy on the nation’s highest court.
Ginsburg, who spoke at New England Law’s annual “Law Day,” said the nine justices only take pictures together when a new member is added. “We haven’t had any of those for some time, but surely we will soon.”
She did not elaborate and did not take questions from reporters.
The most likely candidates to either step down or drop dead are Ginsburg; 88-year-old John Paul Stevens; and 69-year-old David Souter. All three are from the “liberal” side of the court, which is a criminal abuse of the word “liberal” — “conservative but not insane” might be a better term.
None of the justices have expressed any desire to retire; including the crazy ones, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Sith Lord Antonin Scalia.
The 76-year-old Ginsburg had surgery last month for pancreatic cancer, but returned to the bench without missing work. She was treated for colon cancer in 1999, but has said she wants to match the tenure of Justice Louis Brandeis, who served for more than two decades until age 82.
