A revered figure at some of the nation’s most elite law schools since her appointment to the court in 1993, Ginsburg flabbergasted many in the legal community when she called Trump a “faker”, and said she could not really imagine what it would be like if he became president.
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U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Thursday said she regrets making critical comments about Republican presidential contender Donald Trump.
It’s no secret that Supreme Court justices have their presidential preferences, but should they be talking about them out loud?
On the eve of the Republican convention, it was clear that Trump enthusiasts, as well as Republican officials lukewarm to his candidacy, were united in their denouncement of Ginsburg. While Supreme Court justices are not held to that standard, the Post thinks they probably should be.
But the torrent of criticism, especially from supporters and allies of Justice Ginsburg, appears to have pierced that protection.
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Ginsburg’s statement. She could have let them stand for themselves and dealt with whatever consequences may have come from them if and when they came.
In expressing her disdain for Trump, Ginsburg was anything but circumspect, leading some to wonder whether, after 23 years at the court, she is looking toward a possible retirement after the presidential election.
Although her views may be shared with many, it is not usual that a justice performs these sorts of political remarks, as House Speaker Paul Ryan said that her comments were indeed “out of place”. Then, he said her statements were a “disgrace to the court and I think she should apologize to the court”.
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Ginsburg has had a history of transparency, Totenberg noted – the justice announced a cancer diagnosis to the public and a correction she made to an opinion she wrote, after a professor noted the mistake in a blog post. Last year, she was named to Time’s list of the 100 Most Influential People in the world. This would seem to be a fairly good indication that Ginsburg would resist stepping aside if Trump wins the nomination, although the fact that she would be in her mid-80s at the end of the first term of a hypothetical Trump Presidency, and well into her 90s at the end of a second term. Trump had called for Ginsburg to resign. Justice Stephen Breyer was questioned about Ginsburg comments, and he said that he would not express an opinion if he had it, referring to the current political scenario.
